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17/3/26 Annual review highlights growing capabilities of AI models, while examining issues from cyber-attacks to job disruption

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17/3/26 Annual review highlights growing capabilities of AI models, while examining issues from cyber-attacks to job disruption

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‘Deepfakes spreading and more AI companions’: seven takeaways from the latest artificial intelligence safety report

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Annual review highlights growing capabilities of AI models, while examining issues from cyber-attacks to job disruption

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10/3/26 TikTok won't protect DMs with controversial privacy tech, saying it would put users at risk

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10/3/26 TikTok won't protect DMs with controversial privacy tech, saying it would put users at risk

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TikTok says it won’t encrypt DMs claiming it puts users at risk

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TikTok tells the BBC it won’t join rival platforms such as WhatsApp and Messenger in using end-to-end encryption.

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16/2/26 Is your child influenced by toxic content? New government campaign supports parents to talk about harmful online content

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16/2/26 Is your child influenced by toxic content? New government campaign supports parents to talk about harmful online content

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government launches campaign to raise awareness of how harmful body-shaming, rage bait and misogynistic content on social media is, as part of drive to encourage parents to talk with their children about online content

new online guidance supports parents in setting safety settings for social media and starting difficult conversations on topics such as misinformation and harmful content

comes as new research reveals half of parents admit not speaking to their children about harmful online content

The Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology ( DSIT) has today (Tuesday 10 February) launched the ' You Won't Know until You Ask ' campaign, providing parents with practical support they can use immediately and the confidence they need to have a conversation with their children about the content they see online.

Backed by behavioural research and academic insights, new guidance has been made available to parents on safety settings, conversation prompts, and age-appropriate advice for tackling misinformation and harmful content - including ragebait and misogynistic content.

It comes as a direct response to parents who have been calling out for support on how to navigate their children's use of social media. New government-commissioned research released today shows that half of British parents admit having never spoken to their children about harmful online content, despite 90% of 11-year-olds now owning a smartphone.

In a poll of over one thousand UK parents, most said they feel confident they understand online platforms - yet a quarter felt they don't know what their child is seeing.

Over half of British parents also said they haven't come across any resources to help them navigate these conversations. Nearly 3-quarters of parents have said they would feel comfortable correcting misinformation if properly equipped.

Whilst the campaign provides immediate support for parents, this launches alongside a National Conversation and consultation on children's digital wellbeing, with the government engaging directly with parents and children across the country to shape longer-term measures.

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said:

I know many parents are worried about what their children see and do online - often out of sight, and at times beyond their control.

We're launching a new campaign to support parents and give them practical tools to have regular, open conversations with their children about what they see and how they interact online.

We are determined to give children the childhood they deserve and prepare them for the future. That is why we are supporting parents with this campaign and launching a consultation on how young people can live and thrive in the age of social media.

The hub encourages parents to explore the internet together with their children and ask open questions, such as "How does this post make you feel?", "Who shared this content?" and "Why do you think they posted it?".

Evidence shows boys are particularly at risk of being algorithmically served misogynistic and harmful content, often without seeking it out. The campaign's emphasis on building critical thinking skills is designed to help parents talk openly about this kind of material before harmful attitudes take root.

The campaign has been developed with expert organisations including Parent Zone and Internet Matters.

Marketing activity, including TV ads and social media content on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, will launch in Yorkshire and the Midlands on 16 February.

The 2 regions have been selected as pilots as they contain a representative sample of the target audience, with broadly similar media literacy skills to the rest of the country so meaningful insights can be gained if the government plans to roll out the campaign more widely.

Dr Kaitlyn Regehr, Associate Professor of Digital Humanities at UCL, said:

Solving this issue requires a multi-pronged approach: regulation, moderation and education. This education-focussed campaign seeks to empower parents and supports collective communication over isolation, ultimately resulting in more intentional choices about screen usage.

Vicki Shotbolt, CEO of ParentZone, said:

We understand how challenging it can be for parents to try to navigate a really complex digital world with their children. The most effective way to do it is with a combination of age appropriate boundaries, user empowerment tools and ongoing, open communication. That's why this campaign to encourage regular, open conversations is so important.

Will Gardner OBE, UK Safer Internet Centre Director, official organiser of Safer Internet Day said:

Today is Safer Internet Day, and it is great to see the launch of the Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology awareness campaign coinciding with this national opportunity for conversations about online safety. This year, following conversations with young people, Safer Internet Day focusses on the safe and responsible use of AI and its adoption into our everyday lives.

Today, we have published research which shows how young people are excited by this incredible technology and are using it more than ever across many online services, but they still have concerns, questions and want to learn more to equip themselves to use AI safely and responsibly. Thousands of schools and other organisations are taking part in and supporting Safer Internet Day, and we hope the day kickstarts conversations in classrooms and homes around the UK and helps young people be better supported when it comes to online safety.

Internet Matters CEO Rachel Huggins said:

Parents and carers are children's main source of information about online safety and who they turn to when something goes wrong online. Yet we know that parents often struggle to have conversations about difficult topics like misogyny and hate speech, despite children coming across this content online. That's why it is so important we equip parents to talk with their children about their online experiences. This campaign gives parents practical tools to start those conversations, and support their children to develop critical thinking skills and make safer choices online.

The campaign launches in parallel to a National Conversation on children's digital wellbeing, with ministers engaging directly with parents and children across the country to shape longer-term measures.

A 3-month formal consultation will open in the coming weeks, including an opportunity for children to contribute directly.

This work builds on progress already delivered under the Online Safety Act: 8 million people now access adult sites with age checks every day; visits to pornography sites have reduced by a third since rules came into force; and the proportion of children encountering age checks online has risen from 30% to 47%, and 58% of parents believe measures are already improving children's safety.

New laws have been brought forward to criminalise the creation of non-consensual intimate images, including sexually explicit deepfakes. The government is also taking action to designate this offence as a priority under the Act, meaning platforms can be required to take proactive steps to prevent it from happening in the first place, not just react after the harm is done.

Further measures announced by the government will ban 'nudification' tools, criminalising those who design and supply them - ensuring those who profit from technology-enabled abuse face serious consequences.

This builds on the government's wider mission to give every young person the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in work and life , including a new citizenship and RSHE (Relationships, Sex and Health Education) curriculum that will ensure every child can identify misinformation and disinformation from a young age.

Notes to editors

Parents can find full guidance, conversation starters and safety advice on the campaign website.

The Media Literacy Parent's study was conducted by YouGov on behalf of DSIT. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1105 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 23 December 2025 to 4 January 2026. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB parents with children aged 8 to 14 years old. The research referenced in this release was conducted by University College London ( UCL), in partnership with the University of Kent and the Association of School and College Leaders ( ASCL). The study combined interviews with young people and school leaders alongside an algorithmic modelling exercise on TikTok. Fieldwork involved creating test accounts representing teenage archetypes and reviewing recommended content over a period of 5 days. The study found a 4 fold increase in misogynistic content served to these accounts during this period.

Online Safety in 2025: summary of the technology sector's response to UK's online safety rules, Ofcom.

Research: social media algorithms amplify misogynistic content to teens, University College London ( UCL).

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Is your child influenced by toxic content? New government campaign supports parents to talk about harmful online content

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A new campaign for parents, full of immediate practical advice on how to talk to your children about harmful online content, as the government bolsters efforts to give every child the healthy upbringing they deserve.

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11/2/26 Stronger laws for tech firms to ensure you don’t see unsolicited nudes

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11/2/26 Stronger laws for tech firms to ensure you don’t see unsolicited nudes

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Online Safety Act strengthened as 'cyberflashing' becomes a priority offence

Dating apps and social media platforms now have to take proactive steps to prevent this vile content before users see it

New law follows a historic government strategy to halve Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) within a decade, which included a commitment to make cyberflashing a 'priority offence' under the Online Safety Act

People using dating apps and social media platforms will be better protected from receiving unsolicited nude images, as a new law compelling tech firms to stop this type of content before it reaches users comes into force today (Thursday 8 January).

Platforms will be required to take proactive steps to prevent this vile content from appearing in the first place, not just react after the harm is done. Tech firms will now face some of the strongest requirements under the Online Safety Act as 'cyberflashing' becomes a Priority Offence.

Companies could tackle these images for example by using automated systems that pre-emptively detect and hide the image, implementing moderation tools or stricter content policies.

Those that fail to comply could face fines of up to 10% of their qualifying worldwide revenue, or have their services blocked in the UK.

Bumble was the first dating app to explicitly moderate cyberflashing to protect its members from seeing unwanted pictures.

The women-first dating app launched Private Detector, an AI-powered feature that automatically detects and blurs nudity in images sent within chats. It then alerts the recipient who can choose to view, block, or report the image. The AI model is carefully trained with vast datasets to avoid misclassification.

Liz Kendall, Technology Secretary, said:

We've cracked down on perpetrators of this vile crime - now we're turning up the heat on tech firms. Platforms are now required by law to detect and prevent this material.

The internet must be a space where women and girls feel safe, respected, and able to thrive.

Elymae Cedeno, VP of Trust and Safety at Bumble said:

Receiving unsolicited sexual images is a daily violation that disproportionately impacts women and undermines their sense of safety online. Strengthening the law to make cyberflashing a Priority Offence is an important step toward ensuring platforms proactively address this behaviour to better protect members.

As part of our long standing safety commitments, Bumble introduced features like Private Detector, which uses AI to identify and blur nude images in chats, giving members greater control over what they see. We hear regularly from our community about the impact of this behaviour, and we welcome measures that increase accountability and help create a safer digital environment.

Ofcom will now consult on new codes of practice, setting out exactly what steps platforms must take to protect users from unsolicited sexual images.

The priority offence marks another step in making the online world safer, particularly for women and children, who are disproportionately targeted. 1 in 3 teenage girls has received unsolicited sexual images*. This government is serious about ending that.

This builds on the government's wider commitment to tackle online abuse and halve violence against women and girls, making clear that the digital world is not a law-free zone.

Minister for Safeguarding and Violence against Women and Girls Jess Phillips said:

For too long cyberflashing has been just another degrading abuse women and girls are expected to endure. We are changing this.

By placing the responsibility on tech companies to block this vile content before users see it, we are preventing women and girls from being harmed in the first place.

We will deploy the full power of the state to make this country safe for women and girls, both online and offline.

Through the cross-government strategy to Build a Safer Society for Women and Girls, published on 18 December, we committed to making the 'cyberflashing' offence a 'priority offence' under the Online Safety Act.

These strengthened protections will tackle the problem at the root, before women are subject to this gross violation.

Note to editors

The survey was carried out by YouGov between people aged 12-18-year-olds in England.

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Stronger laws for tech firms to ensure you don't see unsolicited nudes

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Dating apps and social media platforms must now prevent cyberflashing, as it becomes a priority offence under the Online Safety Act.

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21/1/26 Cyber Security Advice for the East Midlands

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21/1/26 Cyber Security Advice for the East Midlands

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Cyber Security | East Midlands Cyber Secure | England

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This website has been created by the East Midlands Cyber Protect Network. ​ This network consists of police officers and staff from the five forces in the region whose goal is to help protect individuals and organisations from the adverse effects of cybercrime.

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6/1/26 Police repeat warning after teenage boy targeted by sextortion scammers in Nottinghamshire

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6/1/26 Police repeat warning after teenage boy targeted by sextortion scammers in Nottinghamshire

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Everybody knows the expression ‘fake news’, but what does it really mean? Each programme in this series takes a different aspect of news and information cult…

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24/11/25 Meet the AI workers who tell their friends and family to stay away from AI

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24/11/25 Meet the AI workers who tell their friends and family to stay away from AI

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Krista Pawloski remembers the single defining moment that shaped her opinion on the ethics of artificial intelligence. As an AI worker on Amazon Mechanical Turk - a marketplace that allows companies to hire workers to perform tasks like entering data or matching an AI prompt with its output - Pawloski spends her time moderating and assessing the quality of AI-generated text, images and videos, as well as some factchecking.

Roughly two years ago, while working from home at her dining room table, she took up a job designating tweets as racist or not. When she was presented with a tweet that read "Listen to that mooncricket sing", she almost clicked on the "no" button before deciding to check the meaning of the word "mooncricket", which, to her surprise, was a racial slur against Black Americans.

"I sat there considering how many times I may have made the same mistake and not caught myself," said Pawloski.

The potential scale of her own errors and those of thousands of other workers like her made Pawloski spiral. How many others had unknowingly let offensive material slip by? Or worse, chosen to allow it?

After years of witnessing the inner workings of AI models, Pawloski decided to no longer use generative AI products personally and tells her family to steer clear of them.

"It's an absolute no in my house," said Pawloski, referring to how she doesn't let her teenage daughter use tools like ChatGPT. And with the people she meets socially, she encourages them to ask AI about something they are very knowledgable in so they can spot its errors and understand for themselves how fallible the tech is. Pawloski said that every time she sees a menu of new tasks to choose from on the Mechanical Turk site, she asks herself if there is any way what she's doing could be used to hurt people - many times, she says, the answer is yes.

A statement from Amazon said that workers can choose which tasks to complete at their discretion and review a task's details before accepting it. Requesters set the specifics of any given task, such as allotted time, pay and instruction levels, according to Amazon.

"Amazon Mechanical Turk is a marketplace that connects businesses and researchers, called requesters, with workers to complete online tasks, such as labeling images, answering surveys, transcribing text or reviewing AI outputs," said Montana MacLachlan, an Amazon spokesperson.

Pawloski isn't alone. A dozen AI raters, workers who check an AI's responses for accuracy and groundedness, told the Guardian that, after becoming aware of the way chatbots and image generators function and just how wrong their output can be, they have begun urging their friends and family not to use generative AI at all - or at least trying to educate their loved ones on using it cautiously. These trainers work on a range of AI models - Google's Gemini, Elon Musk's Grok, other popular models, and several smaller or lesser-known bots.

One worker, an AI rater with Google who evaluates the responses generated by Google Search's AI Overviews, said that she tries to use AI as sparingly as possible, if at all. The company's approach to AI-generated responses to questions of health, in particular, gave her pause, she said, requesting anonymity for fear of professional reprisal. She said she observed her colleagues evaluating AI-generated responses to medical matters uncritically and was tasked with evaluating such questions herself, despite a lack of medical training.

At home, she has forbidden her 10-year-old daughter from using chatbots. "She has to learn critical thinking skills first or she won't be able to tell if the output is any good," the rater said.

"Ratings are just one of many aggregated data points that help us measure how well our systems are working, but do not directly impact our algorithms or models," a statement from Google reads. "We also have a range of strong protections in place to surface high quality information across our products."

Bot watchers sound the alarm

These people are part of a global workforce of tens of thousands who help chatbots sound more human. When checking AI responses, they also try their best to ensure that a chatbot doesn't spout inaccurate or harmful information.

When the people who make AI seem trustworthy are those who trust it the least, however, experts believe it signals a much larger issue.

"It shows there are probably incentives to ship and scale over slow, careful validation, and that the feedback raters give is getting ignored," said Alex Mahadevan, director of MediaWise at Poynter, a media literacy program. "So this means when we see the final [version of the] chatbot, we can expect the same type of errors they're experiencing. It does not bode well for a public that is increasingly going to LLMs for news and information."

AI workers said they distrust the models they work on because of a consistent emphasis on rapid turnaround time at the expense of quality. Brook Hansen, an AI worker on Amazon Mechanical Turk, explained that while she doesn't mistrust generative AI as a concept, she also doesn't trust the companies that develop and deploy these tools. For her, the biggest turning point was realizing how little support the people training these systems receive.

"We're expected to help make the model better, yet we're often given vague or incomplete instructions, minimal training and unrealistic time limits to complete tasks," said Hansen, who has been doing data work since 2010 and has had a part in training some of Silicon Valley's most popular AI models. "If workers aren't equipped with the information, resources and time we need, how can the outcomes possibly be safe, accurate or ethical? For me, that gap between what's expected of us and what we're actually given to do the job is a clear sign that companies are prioritizing speed and profit over responsibility and quality."

Dispensing false information in a confident tone, rather than offering no answer when none is readily available, is a major flaw of generative AI, experts say. An audit of the top 10 generative AI models including ChatGPT, Gemini and Meta's AI by the media literacy non-profit NewsGuard revealed that the non-response rates of chatbots went down from 31% in August 2024 to 0% in August 2025. At the same time, the chatbots' likelihood of repeating false information almost doubled from 18% to 35%, NewsGuard found. None of the companies responded to NewsGuard's request for a comment at the time.

"I wouldn't trust any facts [the bot] offers up without checking them myself - it's just not reliable," said another Google AI rater, requesting anonymity due to a nondisclosure agreement she has signed with the contracting company. She warns people about using it and echoed another rater's point about people with only cursory knowledge being tasked with medical questions and sensitive ethical ones, too. "This is not an ethical robot. It's just a robot."

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"We joke that [chatbots] would be great if we could get them to stop lying," said one AI tutor who has worked with Gemini, ChatGPT and Grok, requesting anonymity, having signed nondisclosure agreements.

'Garbage in, garbage out'

Another AI rater who started his journey rating responses for Google's products in early 2024 began to feel he couldn't trust AI around six months into the job. He was tasked with stumping the model - meaning he had to ask Google's AI various questions that would expose its limitations or weaknesses. Having a degree in history, this worker asked the model historical questions for the task.

"I asked it about the history of the Palestinian people, and it wouldn't give me an answer no matter how I rephrased the question," recalled this worker, requesting anonymity, having signed a nondisclosure agreement. "When I asked it about the history of Israel, it had no problems giving me a very extensive rundown. We reported it, but nobody seemed to care at Google." When asked specifically about the situation the rater described, Google did not issue a statement.

For this Google worker, the biggest concern with AI training is the feedback given to AI models by raters like him. "After having seen how bad the data is that goes into supposedly training the model, I knew there was absolutely no way it could ever be trained correctly like that," he said. He used the term "garbage in, garbage out", a principle in computer programming which explains that if you feed bad or incomplete data into a technical system, then the output would also have the same flaws.

The rater avoids using generative AI and has also "advised every family member and friend of mine to not buy newer phones that have AI integrated in them, to resist automatic updates if possible that add AI integration, and to not tell AI anything personal", he said.

Fragile, not futuristic

Whenever the topic of AI comes up in a social conversation, Hansen reminds people that AI is not magic - explaining the army of invisible workers behind it, the unreliability of the information and how environmentally damaging it is.

"Once you've seen how these systems are cobbled together - the biases, the rushed timelines, the constant compromises - you stop seeing AI as futuristic and start seeing it as fragile," said Adio Dinika, who studies the labor behind AI at the Distributed AI Research Institute, about people who work behind the scenes. "In my experience it's always people who don't understand AI who are enchanted by it."

The AI workers who spoke to the Guardian said they are taking it upon themselves to make better choices and create awareness around them, particularly emphasizing the idea that AI, in Hansen's words, "is only as good as what's put into it, and what's put into it is not always the best information". She and Pawloski gave a presentation in May at the Michigan Association of School Boards spring conference. In a room full of school board members and administrators from across the state, they spoke about the ethical and environmental impacts of artificial intelligence, hoping to spark a conversation.

"Many attendees were shocked by what they learned, since most had never heard about the human labor or environmental footprint behind AI," said Hansen. "Some were grateful for the insight, while others were defensive or frustrated, accusing us of being 'doom and gloom' about technology they saw as exciting and full of potential."

Pawloski compares AI ethics to that of the textile industry: when people didn't know how cheap clothes were made, they were happy to find the best deal and save a few bucks. But as the stories of sweatshops started coming out, consumers had a choice and knew they should be asking questions. She believes it's the same for AI.

"Where does your data come from? Is this model built on copyright infringement? Were workers fairly compensated for their work?" she said. "We are just starting to ask those questions, so in most cases the general public does not have access to the truth, but just like the textile industry, if we keep asking and pushing, change is possible."

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Meet the AI workers who tell their friends and family to stay away from AI

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When the people making AI seem trustworthy are the ones who trust it the least, it shows that incentives for speed are overtaking safety, experts say

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You’re in the right place if you’ve experienced—or think you might be experiencing—digital or online abuse, harassment, scams, location-tracking, privacy violation, or digital harm of any kind. This guide is also for advocates, friends, or professionals supporting those dealing with these types of harm. In this guide, we offer clear, practical steps to help improve safety, build confidence, and find support.

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The monthly AI or real quiz: August 2025

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The monthly AI or real quiz: August 2025

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Celebrity AI images with Jenna Ortega, Jack Grealish, Lindsay Lohan, Pedro Pascal and more - BBC Bitesize

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Challenge yourself with this edition of our monthly AI or real quiz and see if you can get top marks!

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9/9/25 Online safety laws to be toughened to make blocking of self-harm content a legal requirement

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9/9/25 Online safety laws to be toughened to make blocking of self-harm content a legal requirement

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Online safety laws to be toughened to make blocking of self-harm content a legal requirement

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The National Crime Agency has warned of an “unprecedented risk” posed to children by groups sharing content promoting self-harm.

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2/9/25 The risks of deepfakes are evolving beyond disinformation

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2/9/25 The risks of deepfakes are evolving beyond disinformation

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LSE Business Review - Social Sciences for Business, Markets, and Enterprises

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The risks of deepfakes are evolving beyond disinformation - LSE Business Review

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Facing the threat of increasingly sophisticated deepfakes, researchers and companies are developing tools to detect them and authenticate content.

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26/8/25 'Tamed' algorithms and plummeting pornography views: Impact of new online safety rules revealed one month on

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26/8/25 'Tamed' algorithms and plummeting pornography views: Impact of new online safety rules revealed one month on

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‘Tamed’ algorithms and plummeting porn views: Impact of new online safety rules revealed one month on

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More than half a million people have signed a petition calling for the Online Safety Act to be repealed, while ministers insist the new rules are a success. One month on, what difference have the controversial regulations made?

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Denmark to tackle deepfakes by giving people copyright to their own features

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Amendment to law will strengthen protection against digital imitations of people’s identities, government says

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Online misogyny and the manosphere: Defending discourses of ‘free speech’ within the alt-right and beyond

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Online misogyny and the manosphere: Defending discourses of ‘free speech’ within the alt-right and beyond

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Ethical Space: International Journal of Communication Ethics

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Online misogyny and the manosphere: Defending discourses of ‘free speech’ within the alt-right and beyond

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28/7/25 New internet rules come into force - here's what is changing

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28/7/25 New internet rules come into force - here's what is changing

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New rules for the internet have come into force - and may well change how you browse.

Ofcom's Children's Codes, a set of regulations designed to protect young people online, mean sites hosting adult content like pornography will need to have "highly effective" age verification in place.

Social media sites will need to make sure their algorithms aren't pushing harmful content to young people and if their terms and conditions say those kinds of posts aren't allowed, the sites will have to make sure their own rules are properly enforced.
So what's going to change?
The biggest change you'll notice straight away is around age verification.

Many adult sites currently have simple boxes for users to tick and say they're over 18 - that's no longer good enough, according to Ofcom.

Instead, they'll have to properly verify their users' ages before allowing them to see adult content.

Users visiting adult websites should be presented with a screen that offers them a few different ways to verify their age.

That could be by checking credit card details, checking ID or by using AI facial age estimation.

This is different to AI facial recognition; whereas facial recognition "recognises" a face by comparing it to an ID or to a database, facial age estimation doesn't attempt to identify the individual.

Instead, it judges faces based on the positions of their features and other ageing traits to estimate how old a user is.

"Facial age estimation is effectively taking a selfie in front of your mobile phone or your laptop, and we capture that image [...] on behalf of the business," Robin Tombs, the chief executive of age estimation company Yoti, told Sky News.

"[The AI] checks 'liveness' to ensure it isn't a photo of somebody older and then estimates the age from that selfie, and then returns an over-18 or under-18 message to the business.

"It then deletes the image."

Every company with adult content on its site is obliged to put these rules into place and Ofcom is willing to "be tough" with non-compliers, according to Jessica Smith, the regulator's online safety principal.

It can impose fines of up to £18m or 10% of revenue and, in very serious cases, stop sites operating in the UK.

1:11
Will it actually make a difference?
Plenty of people hope so - the government, Ofcom, children's groups and campaigners are all banking on these new rules to change children's experience on the internet.

"We've had unrestricted access to this content for a generation of children which has had a lot of impacts," Ms Smith told Sky News.

"It is widely accepted that you have to check your age before you can drink alcohol, and so this is a kind of social change as well as a technical one.

"It's about what we, as a society, say is normal for our online experiences. And I think these protections will be important for children in all walks of life."
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This isn't necessarily going to stop determined young people from seeking out adult content, according to Ms Smith, but it should stop inappropriate posts from popping up unexpectedly on young people's feeds.

"The most common way that children come across pornography, at least at first, is that they come across it accidentally," she told Sky News.

"So they're not seeking out, they are just scrolling through a social media service and then they'll see something that they don't want to see. And that can be really shocking and disturbing for them.

"But it also shows them what content is out there and introduces them to a new type of online content."

Some websites and apps have already announced they'll implement the changes, including the UK's biggest pornography site PornHub, social media sites Discord and Reddit, and dating app Grindr.

Reddit is already enforcing age verification on content like self-harm, suicide and pornography.

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New internet rules come into force - here's what is changing

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Many adult sites currently have simple boxes for users to tick and say they're over 18 - that's no longer good enough, according to Ofcom.

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21/7/25 New report reveals how risky and unchecked AI chatbots are the new ‘go to’ for millions of children 

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21/7/25 New report reveals how risky and unchecked AI chatbots are the new ‘go to’ for millions of children 

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Summary

Our new survey of 1,000 children and 2,000 parents in the UK shows how rising numbers of children (64%) are using AI chatbots for help with everything from homework to emotional advice and companionship - with many never questioning the accuracy or appropriateness of the responses they receive back.

The report, "Me, Myself, & AI", describes how many children are increasingly talking with AI chatbots as friends, despite many of the popular AI chatbots not being built for children to use in this way. Over a third (35%) of children who use them say talking to an AI chatbot is like talking to a friend, while six in ten parents say they worry their children believe AI chatbots are real people.

The report warns vulnerable children are most at risk, with the survey finding 71% of vulnerable children are using AI chatbots. A quarter (26%) of vulnerable children who are using AI chatbots, say they would rather talk to an AI chatbot than a real person, and 23% said they use chatbots because they don't have anyone else to talk to.

The report warns that children are using AI chatbots on platforms not designed for them, without adequate safeguards, such age verification and content moderation, and calls on the Government to clarify how AI chatbots fall within the scope of the Online Safety Act.

AI is increasingly being used by children to help with schoolwork, and the report calls for schools to be provided with clear and consistent guidance when it comes to building children's knowledge and use of AI, including chatbots. Parents are also struggling to keep up with the pace of AI and need support to guide their children in using it confidently and responsibly.

Today (Sunday July 13 th) we've published a new report, 'Me, myself & AI: Understanding and safeguarding children's use of AI chatbots'.

As AI chatbots fast become a part of children's everyday lives, the report explores how children are interacting with them. While the report highlights how AI tools can offer benefits to children such aslearning support and a space to ask questions, it also warns that they pose risks to children's safety and development. A lack of age verification and regulation means some children are being exposed to inappropriate content.

Our research raises concerns that children are using AI chatbots in emotionally driven ways, including for friendship and advice, despite many of the popular AI chatbots not being built for children to use in this way. The report warns that children may become overly reliant on AI chatbots or receive inaccurate or inappropriate responses, which may mean they are less likely to seek help from trusted adults.

These concerns have been heighted by incidents, such as a case in Florida where a mother filed a lawsuit against character.ai, claiming an AI chatbot based on a character from Game of Thrones engaged in abusive and sexual interactions with her teenage son and encouraged him to take his own life. In the UK, an MP recently told Parliament about "an extremely harrowing meeting" with a constituent whose 12-year-old son had allegedly been groomed by a chatbot on the same platform.

The report argues the Government and tech industry need to re-examine whether existing laws and regulation adequately protect children who are using AI chatbots. There is growing recognition that further clarity, updated guidance or new legislation may be needed. In particular, we are calling for Government to place strong age-assurance requirements on providers of AI chatbots, to ensure providers enforce minimum age requirements and create age-appropriate experiences for children.

To inform our research, we surveyed a representative sample of 1,000 children in the UK aged 9-17 and 2,000 parents of children aged 3-17 and held four focus groups with children. User testing was conducted on three AI chatbots - ChatGPT, Snapchat's My AI and character.ai, and two 'avatars' were created to simulate a child's experience on these.

Key findings from this research includes:

Children are using AI chatbots in diverse and imaginative ways. 42% of children aged 9-17 who have used AI chatbots, have used them to support with schoolwork. Children are using them to help with revision, writing support and 'practice' language skills. Many appreciate having instant answers and explanations.

Advice-seeking: Almost a quarter (23%) of children who have used an AI chatbot have already used them to seek advice from what to wear or to practice conversations with friends, to more significant matters such as mental health. Some children who have used AI chatbots (15%) say they would rather talk to a chatbot than a real person.

Companionship: Vulnerable children in particular use AI chatbots for connection and comfort. One in six (16%) vulnerable children said they use them because they wanted a friend, with half (50%) saying that talking to an AI chatbot feels like talking to a friend. Some children are using AI chatbots because they don't have anyone else to speak to.

Inaccurate and insufficient responses: Children shared examples of misleading or inaccurate responses, which was backed up by our own user testing. AI chatbots at times failed to support children with clear and comprehensive advice through its responses. This is particularly concerning given that 58% of children who have used AI chatbots said they think using an AI chatbot is better than searching themselves.

High trust in advice: Two in five (40%) children who have used AI chatbots have no concerns about following advice from a chatbot, and a further 36% are uncertain if they should be concerned. This number is even higher for vulnerable children. This is despite AI chatbots, at times, providing contradictory or unsupportive advice.

Exposure to harmful content: Children can be exposed to explicit and age-inappropriate material, including misogynistic content, despite AI chatbot providers prohibiting this content for child users in their terms of service.

Blurred boundaries: Some children already see AI chatbots as human-like with 35% of children who use AI chatbots saying talking to an AI chatbot is like talking to a friend. As AI chatbots become even more human-like in their responses, children may spend more time interacting with AI chatbots and become more emotionally reliant. This is concerning given one in eight (12%) children are using AI chatbots as they have no one else to speak to, which rises to nearly one in four (23%) vulnerable children.

Children are being left to navigate AI chatbots on their own or with limited input from trusted adults. 62% of parents say they are concerned about the accuracy of AI-generated information, yet only 34% of parents had spoken to their child about how to judge whether content produced by AI is truthful. Only 57% of children report having spoken with teachers or school about AI, and children say advice from teachers within schools can also be contradictory.

The report also makes system-wide recommendations to support and protect children using AI chatbots, including:

Industry adopting a safety-by-design approach to create age-appropriate AI chatbots that reflect children's needs, with built-in parental controls, trusted signposts and media literacy features.

Government providing clear guidance on how AI chatbots are covered by the Online Safety Act, mandating effective age assurance on providers of AI chatbots that aren't built for children, and ensuring regulation keeps pace with rapidly evolving AI technologies.

Government supporting schools to embed AI and media literacy at all key stages, including training teachers and offering schools, parents and children clear guidance on appropriate AI use.

Parents and carers being supported to guide their child's use of AI and have conversations about what AI chatbots are, how they work and when to use them, including when to seek real-world support.

Policymakers, research and industry centring children's voices in the development, regulation and governance of AI chatbots and investing in long-term research on how emotionally responsive AI may shape childhood.

Rachel Huggins, Co-CEO of Internet Matters, said:

"AI chatbots are rapidly becoming a part of childhood, with their use growing dramatically over the past two years. Yet most children, parents and schools are flying blind, and don't have the information or protective tools they need to manage this technological revolution in a safe way.

"While there are clearly benefits to AI, our research reveals how chatbots are starting to reshape children's views of 'friendship'. We've arrived at a point very quickly where children, and in particular vulnerable children, can see AI chatbots as real people, and as such are asking them for emotionally driven and sensitive advice. Also concerning is that they are often unquestioning about what their new "friends" are telling them.

"We must heed these early warning signs and take coordinated action to make sure children can explore the potential of AI chatbots safely and positively and avoid the obvious potential for harm.

"Millions of children in the UK are using AI chatbots on platforms not designed for them, without adequate safeguards, education or oversight. Parents, carers and educators need support to guide children's AI use. The tech industry must adopt a safety by design approach to the development of AI chatbots while Government should ensure our online safety laws are robust enough to meet the challenges this new technology is bringing into children's lives."

Derek Ray-Hill, Interim CEO at the Internet Watch Foundation, said:

"This report raises some fundamental questions about the regulation and oversight of these AI chatbots.

"That children may be encountering explicit or age-inappropriate content via AI chatbots increases the potential for harms in a space, which, as our evidence suggests, is already proving to be challenging for young users. Reports that grooming may have occurred via this technology are particularly disturbing.

"Children deserve a safe internet where they can play, socialise, and learn without being exposed to harm. We need to see urgent action from Government and tech companies to build safety by design into AI chatbots before they are made available."

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In Adolescence, Netflix'snew limited series, audiences are introduced to 13-year-old Jamie Miller (Owen Cooper). He's a young lad growing up in your average English town. His parents are busy. He shares a bathroom with his older sister. And three minutes into the show, an armed team of police officers breaks down the door to his home to arrest him on suspicion of murder.

Editor's note: This article contains spoilers.

The series, created by Steven Graham ( Boiling Point, Band of Brothers) and Jack Thorne (, His Dark Materials) was made to chart the emotional impact of misogyny-based violence through one British family that dramatizes how easy it is for a boy to be radicalized online. Each of the four episodes of Adolescence are shot in one continuous take, a point of view that makes viewers feel like they are following Jamie, the Miller family, and their community through their the aftermath of the crime, from Jamie being held at gunpoint by police to the Millers' anxious wait at the station to the grim realization that their lives have changed forever. Episode One introduces Jamie as a slight kid who hates needles and just wants to go home. But he's also a murderer, with police providing CCTV footage of him stabbing classmate Katie Leonard to death in a parking lot.

What is first suspected to be bullying or some kind of fight gone wrong is quickly revealed to be an entirely new horror. It's heavily implied Jamie was radicalized online by incel-like forums, which skewed his view of women and their worth - and was upset after Katie rejected a date with him and called him an incel online. Incels, or involuntary celibates, are a subculture of misogyny popularized in online communities also known as the manosphere. These spaces and beliefs have been amplified by popular men's-rights influencers like Andrew Tate. Tate is mentioned explicitly in the series when police try to describe what kind of content Jamie might have been exposed to. "It's the involuntary celibate stuff," Detective Sergeant Misha Frank (Faye Marsay) says. "It's the Andrew Tate shite." (Tate rejected the characterization through a spokesperson in a statement to . "The reference to Andrew Tate in Adolescence is an attempt to pin broader societal issues on one individual, which is neither fair nor accurate. Whilst online influence is a valid topic, it's unjust for the public to make him the scapegoat for complex problems like radicalization and violence, which stem from far wider cultural and systemic factors.")

Adolescence isn't based on one true story, but it comes at a time of heightened awareness about the link between online misogynistic worldviews and acts of violence or mass terrorism. While interest in the series continues to grow, Adolescence has also exposed just how far manosphere dread goes online, sparking conversations online about who falls for it, and who gets hurt in the process. Rolling Stone spoke with fans of the series, experts in online misogyny, and one of Adolescence 's creators to explore why this show is hitting so hard - and what lessons they each hope people will remember once they turn their televisions off.

Young Men in Crisis

Allysa Czerwinsky, a male-supremacism and online extremism researcher and PhD candidate at the University of Manchester, says the manosphere is enticing because it promises to have answers to real problems young men face in modern society.

"You've got these pervasive narratives of victimhood, of limited agency, of limited self-worth that are festering into this emotional turmoil. Especially young kids, but also older adults as well, don't know where to put the blame," Czerwinksy says. "And the ideologies offer them a really easy solution. A lot of these experiences are grounded in real hurt, real harm, but then twisted to say, 'Women are responsible for this.'"

Tate is perhaps the most recognizable face in the manosphere, well known for his misogynistic social media posts where he advocates for violence against, and subjugation of, women. (He is currently facing rape and sex trafficking charges in Romania, and is under criminal investigation in Florida. He's denied the charges.) Tate's name is often used as a shorthand for how popular misogynistic views have become in online spaces, but while he's mentioned briefly in the show, Adolescence creator Jack Thorne didn't want to single him out. Instead, Thorne made the series without one single figure at fault for Jamie's behavior, in the hopes it would highlight just how enticing radicalization can be.

"My job was to sit in Jamie's shoes," he tells Rolling Stone. "But the most troubling thing was reading, watching, consuming, being pelted with this stuff, I felt like I understood the logic of it. When I was a 13-year-old kid I looked around and I felt unattractive, I felt uninteresting, I felt instinctively lonely. If I heard that the reason for this was female ideology, that would have been very attractive."

Georgina Barker, an international relations major at the University of Edinburgh, clicked on Adolescence because she finds popular entertainment that tackles current political problems interesting. But as she watched, she found herself drawn in by Jamie's story. Barker, 19, says she can remember just how popular Tate had become when she was in high school, and how young men around her idolized his takes on masculinity. Tate's ideology was everywhere, which is why Barker thinks part of the answer to the manosphere's reach is highlighting how rhetoric can lead to actual violence.

"The main character [of Adolescence] was such a normal teenager," she says, "He had a normal family, normal school, normal friends, but he just kind of fell into the manosphere and incel culture. It showed he wasn't born evil. He was just conditioned that way. I think that's really important in recognizing that this could be anyone, and that's why we need to have these conversations."

Jaz Johnson, a 23-year-old from Brighton, is a pastoral officer (a British cross between a social worker, guidance counselor, and student support staff) at a local secondary school. So when she saw Jamie on her screen, she couldn't help but immediately think of her students. Her job is about intervention before the worst happens, and as both a pastoral officer and a big sister, she firmly believes it's up to family and community members to call out violent language the minute they hear it.

"It got me thinking about how we can know the men in our lives, or boys in our lives, one way, but they could be completely different," she tells Rolling Stone. "It was so important to me that the show called out Tate and called out the manosphere and actually named these things instead of dancing around it. Because it gets parents talking. And if they hear their kids talking like that, it clues them in. We should be asking the men in our lives, 'How do you perceive women? How do you see them in certain situations?"

https://www. tiktok.com/@jazisajoke/video/7482364185997872406?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7138125452832949806

When Aoife Mcmorrow, a 24-year old from Greater London, turned on Adolescence, she tells Rolling Stone she didn't have to imagine a situation like Jamie's - because one had happened a few miles down the road. On Sept. 24, 2024, a then-18-year-old teen named Nicholas Prosper was arrested after neighbors reported hearing gunshots from his apartment. Prosper had a gun and planned to commit a mass shooting at St. Joseph's Primary School in Luton. His family confronted him before he left, and he killed his mother, sister, and brother before being arrested by police. But a subsequent police investigation into his internet history revealed that Prosper was fascinated with mass murder events like Sandy Hook and the Virginia Tech shooting - killings that are idealized on some incel forums. If Prosper hadn't been interrupted, he could have perpetrated the first school shooting in the U.K. since 1996.

For Mcmorrow, she believes the answer could lie in governments limiting children's access to the internet, even as cell phones and social media accounts become more popular with younger age groups. "It's scary how many different corners of the internet there are now, and that they move so fast we can't keep up with them," Mcmorrow says. "To know what kids are seeing, what they're taking in, extremes of it, they're so incredibly accessible. Just in the last year, I could name multiple stories or events or crimes that [ Adolescence] could relate to. A lot of people hide behind freedom of speech, but they're sharing really damaging ideologies, and young kids are seeing that."

The Worldwide Response

Since its release, Adolescence has remained a top show on Netflix, with the platform reporting it as their Number One series with over 24 million views during its first four days. It's also become a trending topic on platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Reddit, and TikTok. U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that he supported showing Adolescence in Parliament and in schools, and that he was already watching it with his children, because of the important conversations it highlights. On TikTok, U.K. and U.S. users are continuing to talk about moments in the show that highlight possible solutions to the problems of the manosphere. But since misogynistic online communities aren't localized, the discourse has spread to encompass dozens of countries and their specific attempts - or lack thereof - to counter radicalization. Czerwinsky, the extremism researcher, notes that part of the show's popularity could stem from its nuance - and acknowledgement that people are searching for answers.

"You're seeing impacts from lockdown. You're seeing isolation. You're seeing an increased use of tech that then is a catalyst for [young men] feeling isolated and alone," Czerwinsky says. "They get messaging that you should have sex by a certain age. You should have your first girlfriend at ages as young as 11 or 12. And that puts a lot of pressure on people. Young boys are in an unfortunate spot where there is messaging that makes sense of this right now. This rhetoric acts as a confirmation bias of repeated rejections, victimizations, or humiliation. That emotion is there. It adds up. And the manosphere's rhetoric says, 'Here is a very nicely packaged answer.'"

Adolescence doesn't pretend that it has a tidy solution to the problem of online misogyny and radicalizing communities. In fact, Thorne tells Rolling Stone that he and Graham's main goal with the show was to create a situation that was specific to Jamie. Other boys could experience the same exact things and not end up killing a girl, which is why who is radicalized is just as important as how. In fact, Thorne loves that people who have watched Adolescence have different ideas about what the solution to the manosphere might be.

The answer for combating radicalization, Thorne believes, is for everyone to get involved. "T​​hey say it takes a village to [raise] a child. It takes a village to destroy a child. If we're going to change the culture, there needs to be multiple solutions," he says. "We need everyone to lean into this problem to save these kids, to stop boys harming girls. It takes us all to do something."

Still, for all the nuance he and Graham brought to telling Jamie's story, the co-creators have faced some criticism for failing to give insight into the young female victim of their protagonist's crime. It is a question Thorne says the collaborators struggled with themselves. "We're still thinking about it, to be honest," he says. "I brought it up with Steven just the other day, whether we should have done it. It's always a battle writing these shows what perspective you tell it from. I think that the partial has enormous power, and that if we'd seen into Katie's world it might have made it easier for us in some way. We could have told Katie's side of the story, and sometimes I think we should've. But we made what we thought was right at the time."

As a researcher, Czerwinsky understands the difficulty of coming up with successful solutions to such a complex and multifaceted problem. But she adds that she hopes progress in discussions around misogyny can happen without regressing into polarization. "We're seeing [the word incel] rise in prominence, but this feels like the first time where an active conversation about how the relational, personal, and wider harms are being discussed together at the same time," Czerwinsky adds. "It's not an us and them."

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Why 'Adolescence' Is Sparking Conversations About Incel Dread Online

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24/3/25 Enforcing the Online Safety Act: Platforms must start tackling illegal material from today   

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24/3/25 Enforcing the Online Safety Act: Platforms must start tackling illegal material from today   

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As deadline passes to carry out illegal harms risk assessments, sites and apps must now start tackling criminal content

Ofcom launches enforcement programme into child sexual abuse imagery on file-sharing services

From today, online platforms must start putting in place measures to protect people in the UK from criminal activity, while Ofcom has launched its latest enforcement programme to assess industry compliance.

Providers of services in scope of the UK's Online Safety Act had until yesterday (16 March) to carry out a suitable and sufficient illegal harms risk assessment - to understand how likely it is that users could encounter illegal content on their service, or, in the case of 'user-to-user' services, how they could be used to commit or facilitate certain criminal offences.

From today, the next set of illegal harms duties come into force. That means platforms now have to start implementing appropriate measures to remove illegal material quickly when they become aware of it, and to reduce the risk of 'priority' criminal content from appearing in the first place.

In the coming weeks and months, we will be assessing platforms' compliance with their new illegal harms obligations under the Act, and launching targeted enforcement action where we uncover concerns.

Given the acute harm caused by the spread of online child sexual abuse material (CSAM), assessing providers' compliance with their safety duties in this area has been identified as one of our early priorities for enforcement.

Tackling CSAM on file-sharing services

Our evidence shows that file-sharing and file-storage services are particularly susceptible to being used for the sharing of image-based CSAM.

Among the 40 safety measures set out in our illegal harms codes of practice, we recommend, for example, that certain services - including all file-sharing services at high risk of hosting CSAM, regardless of size - use automated moderation technology, including 'perceptual hash-matching', to assess whether content is CSAM and, if so, to swiftly take it down.

Today, we have launched an enforcement programme to assess the safety measures being taken, or that will soon be taken, by file-sharing and file-storage providers to prevent offenders from disseminating CSAM on their services.

We have written to a number of these services to put them on notice that we will shortly be sending them formal information requests regarding the measures they have in place, or will soon have in place, to tackle CSAM, and requiring them to submit their illegal harms risk assessments to us.

If any platform does not engage with us or come into compliance, we will not hesitate to open investigations into individual services. We have strong enforcement powers at our disposal, including being able to issue fines of up to 10% of turnover or £18m - whichever is greater - or to apply to a court to block a site in the UK in the most serious cases.

Working with child protection experts

Our preliminary supervision activity has involved working closely with law enforcement agencies and other organisations - including the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), the Canadian Centre for Child Protection (C3P) and the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) - to identify file-sharing and file-storage services at highest risk of hosting image-based CSAM.

In recent months, we have been engaging with the largest file-sharing and file-storage services about their obligations under the Act. Additionally, our taskforce dedicated to driving compliance with small but risky services has identified and engaged with providers of smaller file-sharing and file-storage services to assess whether they are already taking appropriate measures.

Other ongoing enforcement activity

Today's CSAM enforcement programme represents the third opened by Ofcom as online safety regulator since the start of this year. In January, we opened an enforcement programme into age assurance measures in the adult sector.

Two weeks ago, we issued formal information requests to providers of a number of services setting them a deadline of 31 March by which to submit their illegal harms risk assessments to us.

We expect to make additional announcements on formal enforcement action over the coming weeks.

Child sexual abuse is utterly sickening and file storage and sharing services are too often used to share this horrific material. Ofcom's first priority is to make sure that sites and apps take the necessary steps to stop it being hosted or shared.

Platforms must now act quickly to come into compliance with their legal duties, and our codes are designed to help them do that. But, make no mistake, any provider who fails to introduce the necessary protections can expect to face the full force of our enforcement action.
- Suzanne Cater, Enforcement Director at Ofcom
It is so important that the fight against child sexual abuse is being prioritised and we are greatly encouraged to see the determination to ensure the abuse we are seeing today does not continue to spiral.

We stand ready to work alongside Ofcom as it enforces the Online Safety Act, and to help companies to do everything they can to comply with the new duties. We have been at the forefront of the fight against online child sexual abuse for nearly three decades, and our tools, tech, and data are cutting edge.

The Online Safety Act has the potential to be transformational in protecting children from online exploitation. Now is the time for online platforms to join the fight and make sure they are doing everything they can to stop the spread of this dangerous and devastating material.
- Derek Ray-Hill, Interim CEO at the Internet Watch Foundation
END

Notes to editors:

1. Services in scope of the Online Safety Act include search engines and 'user-to-user' services with a significant number of UK users, or targeting the UK market. User-to-user services are where people may encounter content - including images, videos, messages or comments - that has been generated, uploaded or shared by other users. For example, social media or video-sharing platforms, messaging, gaming and dating apps, forums and file-sharing sites.

2. The Online Safety Act lists over 130 'priority offences', and tech firms must assess and mitigate the risk of these occurring on their platforms. The priority offences can be split into 17 categories:

Terrorism

Harassment, stalking, threats and abuse offences

Coercive and controlling behaviour

Hate offences

Intimate image abuse

Extreme pornography

Child sexual exploitation and abuse

Sexual exploitation of adults

Unlawful immigration

Human trafficking

Fraud and financial offences

Proceeds of crime

Assisting or encouraging suicide

Drugs and psychoactive substances

Weapons offences (knives, firearms, and other weapons)

Foreign interference

Animal welfare

3. We are initially prioritising the compliance of sites and apps that may present particular risks of harm from illegal content due to their size or nature - for example because they have a large number of users in the UK, or because their users may risk encountering some of the most harmful forms of online content and conduct. When we previously set out our approach to implementing the Online Safety Act, we identified eight targets for immediate action, based on where harm is greatest and where we know there are clear steps services can take:

Services prioritise user safety, complete effective risk assessments, tackle risks to users, and name senior accountable people.

Children are protected from harmful content and activity, including suicide and self-harm material and pornography.

Offenders can't share child sexual abuse content and children don't face unsafe contact.

Illegal content is taken down quickly.

Women and girls face less gendered harm and abuse online.

Online fraud is reduced.

Users - especially children - are empowered to have control over their online experience.

More transparency in how platforms keep users safe, and what Ofcom is doing to deliver positive change.

4. Hash-matching is a process that detects content previously identified as illegal or violative. 'Hashing' is an umbrella term for techniques used to create fingerprints of content, which can then be stored in a database. These can be used by providers, who generate hashes of the content on their service and compare those against the hashes in the database to test whether any uploaded content is a 'match' for those images. There are several types of hash-matching. Ofcom's codes of practice recommend the use of 'perceptual' over 'cryptographic' hash-matching, to allow for more harmful content to be identified and potentially moderated. Perceptual hash-matching aims to identify images that are similar to images of known CSAM, whereas cryptographic hash-matching identifies identical images. In practice, perceptual hash-matching is therefore more likely to detect a larger amount of CSAM compared to other forms of hash-matching.

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Enforcing the Online Safety Act: Platforms must start tackling illegal material from today

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From today, online platforms must start putting in place measures to protect people in the UK from criminal activity, while Ofcom has launched its latest enforcement programme to assess industry compliance.

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3/3/25 Don’t let fraudsters trip you up this summer:

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3/3/25 Don’t let fraudsters trip you up this summer:

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Don’t let fraudsters trip you up this summer: new alert issued as people look to snap up online holiday deals | Action Fraud

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People looking to snap up online holiday deals ahead of the summer are being warned to stay extra alert and do their research before booking their getaways, as new data reveals victims lost a tot

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Content warning: This section includes graphic sexual descriptions.

A nude image must include one of the following to be removed:

nude or semi-nude sexual posing

someone nude or semi-nude touching themselves in a sexual way

any sexual activity involving a child

someone hurting someone else sexually

sexual activity that includes animals.

Where possible, it is better if you can upload the original image or video, or a copy of it, rather than a photograph of it on another screen. This helps IWF find the image more accurately.

If you want to report something that isn't a nude image or video to see if it can be taken down, you can see more information from Childline about deleting things shared online here. You can make a report to CEOP, the part of the police who are there to support children and young people online. You can always speak to a Childline counsellor.

Confirming your age with ID gives us more legal powers to remove images from as many places as possible. If you don't have ID or feel comfortable using it, we can still take down images, but from fewer places.

You can use the following ID to confirm your identity using Yoti:

passport or biometric residence permit

driving licence and provisional licence

Young Scot Card (Yoti app only)

CitizenCard (Yoti app only).

If you don't have any of these, you can get a young person's ID card. You'll be able to get this for £5 with the promo code NSPCC5. Make sure you choose 'Yoti CitizenCard' on the first page.

Whatever ID you use, please make sure that it is valid and in-date.

IWF will read all reports within one working day, from Monday to Friday. The time it takes to get your image removed from the internet can be different depending on where the image is hosted.

If the image is on a UK-based website it can often be removed within 2-3 hours. Unfortunately, in some countries it can take longer - sometimes days or weeks. But IWF analysts will always try to make sure it happens as soon as possible.

We'll do our best to let you know once your image has been removed by sending a message to your  Childline locker.

We recommend you check your locker every few days after you make a report. This is so you can see if your image has been removed, and so Childline can let you know if IWF need more information to be able to remove it. Remember, IWF can't contact you directly.

If you need support to help you cope while you're waiting, you can also speak to a Childline counsellor any time.

When you use Report Remove, your image or video is shared with the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF). They'll work to get your image removed from the internet. See 'Who are the IWF?' to learn about how that happens.

Most of the time, nobody will know that you've made a report and your report won't be shared with anyone else.

If the police already have the image or video you report, then they might investigate what's happened. Only the police can decide if they'll need to tell someone else.

The police might already have your image or video if:

someone has reported it on another website and that website passed it to the police

they're investigating someone who had or has the image or video already (if someone is found to have your image and is breaking the law - regardless of how, it may be included as evidence in a criminal case against that person

someone else reported the image to them directly.

Remember that the police are there to protect you, not to get you into trouble. If the image has been reported somewhere else and you're worried, you can always  speak to a Childline counsellor.

If you have parental controls on your phone your parent or carer might see when you want to download a new app, so they might get a notification if you try to download Yoti and want to know why. To avoid this, use the second option to prove your age (called 'ID verification').

The IWF can remove images that are public or available to anyone on the internet. However, they won't be able to remove images or videos on encrypted networks like WhatsApp, or which are saved on a person's phone or computer.

If you're over 13 and you've made a report without using ID, then there may be some sites the IWF can't take images down from.

If you don't use ID the IWF can help by removing your image or video from most sites. If you do use ID, the IWF can remove from all sites

The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), a UK charity, are there to help remove illegal nude images of under 18s posted online.

Once the IWF has confirmed your nude image is against the law and can be removed from the internet they give it a digital fingerprint called a 'hash'. The hash can be used to find your image online even if it has been cropped or slightly changed.

Sharing just the hash with certain trusted companies and organisations, means that technology can be used to find online matches of the image - this is key to trying to stop it appearing in different places on the internet. Even though the hashes and images are shared with UK police, this is so that if they came across the image some other way, they'd know that you also reported it yourself. Report Remove was developed with the full support of the police and no one involved wants to get you into trouble for sharing the image so it can be removed.

Different companies use the hash in different ways. For example, if an illegal image match is found to have been shared by an online account holder, a company may decide to close that person's account as posting illegal images will be against the company's terms and conditions. If your image(s) are found on or are linked to your online user account(s) it may be possible for the company to associate your profile with the images.

The companies that take the hashes trust the Report Remove process, however if they have significant concerns that the person in the image may not be the person who was age verified, they may get in touch with the IWF to raise their concerns.

There are 3 organisations that help you report your image using Report Remove. These are Childline, the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) and also Yoti if you are 13 or older and choose to prove your age using ID. All of them have a responsibility to keep all of your personal information safe.

1. We'll ask you to choose your age range (under 13, 13-15, 16-17, 18 and over). If you're under 13, you'll go straight to step 3. If you're aged 13 or older, us at Childline will ask you if you have access to ID to prove your age. If you do, you'll be asked to visit Yoti. The only information we will share with Yoti is that you are wanting to prove your age to use Report Remove.

2. Once you prove your age using Yoti, you will come back to Report Remove on Childline. The only information Yoti will share with Childline is confirmation that you're younger or older than 18.

3. We'll then ask you to create or sign in to a Childline account. Then you'll go to the IWF website to share the content you want removed. Childline will only share the information below with IWF:

that you're younger than 18 (either confirmed by Yoti, or that you told us you are younger than 18),

the age range you selected at the start,

a unique number that is created when you use Report Remove.

4. After your report has been passed to the IWF, they will tell Childline if they were able to work to take the images or video down from the internet, and why. This is so Childline can let you know what happened. IWF may also tell Childline some information about what you reported, to help them know how best to support you and keep you safe. IWF will never share an image or video that you report with Childline.

Information you give to Childline
Any information you give Childline will always be treated carefully and in line with our  Privacy Policy. This means that any information you give us as part of Report Remove will only be used to help the IWF review your report and to keep you safe. This will include the age range that you select and a unique number that's created when you go onto the IWF website. We will not share any of your information with Yoti.
Information you give to IWF
The only information you will give to the IWF are the images, videos or URLs you report. There is space to add information such as where the image or video is on a webpage.

They will process this in line with their privacy policy.

Nude images and videos that IWF decide are illegal may be kept by the IWF for up to 2 years. This is because there is an agreement with the Police and CPS (Crime Prosecution Service), called a 'Memorandum of Understanding' (MOU). Illegal images are given a hash (a string of numbers that are like a digital fingerprint). The hash is shared with organisations such as technology companies who host online content, so that they can look for the image and take it down. The actual image is not shared with these companies. The image and the hash are shared with the police who store it on their Child Abuse Image Database. Any images or videos that they decide are not illegal may be kept for a maximum of 6 months for quality checking and any follow up questions. They will then be deleted. Sometimes, even if it's decided that the content isn't illegal, IWF can share the content URL with some industry members to see if they can take the content down.

If you report a URL (link to a webpage), and choose not to prove your age using ID, IWF will still check to see if the content is something they can take action on. If so IWF may share the URL with South West Grid for Learning (SWGfL), who are a charity who help people who have had intimate images of them shared online. SWGfL will never view the content on a URL that is shared with them. SWGfL send a notice to internet companies that host the webpage you reported, to tell them to take it down. This is because IWF can only send a notice to companies to take a specific webpage down when it is confirmed it is of a child. SWGfL can also send notice to take down content, but they do not need to prove it is of a child. This helps get your images or videos from even more places.

Childline will never see what pictures, videos or URLs you share with the IWF. The only information the IWF shares with Childline apart from your case number is whether or not they could take down your images or videos, and why, so we can let you know, as well as information about the image or video that you reported that will help Childline to support you and keep you safe.

Information you give to Yoti
You can choose to use Yoti to confirm your age if you're over 13. This may involve taking a selfie, so Yoti know it is you who are proving your age, and uploading a picture of some ID. Any personal data you send Yoti - like your photo, date of birth or address - is scrambled with a high level of encryption so that even if it was stolen, no one could use it to identify you. The only information Yoti shares with Childline is confirmation that you're under or over 18.

You can see Yoti's privacy policy here, and more information about their age portal here, which is what is used in Report Remove to prove your age.

If you're using the Yoti app, Yoti may use the selfie, month and year of birth you add to the Yoti app to improve its age estimation technology. You can opt out from this in the More> My Data> Biometric consent menu of the app.

There are lots of ways to get help with your report:

if you're having problems with Yoti, you can contact them directly in the app.

if you need any support with making your report send a message to Childline with the title 'Report Remove'.

Childline counsellors are always here for you and want to help. And you can  talk to them  about anything you're going through.
I have a technical issue, what should I do?

Try using your default browser and close private browsing if you're using the Yoti app.

See if you can log in to your locker and send an email to Childline explaining your problem and the team will be able to help.

Make sure the ID you're using is valid and in-date (not expired).

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Use Report Remove to remove a nude image shared online

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3/2/25 Leng or Liar can you spot the fake

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3/2/25 Leng or Liar can you spot the fake

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14/1/25 Top Tips for Parents and carers for internet safety 

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14/1/25 Top Tips for Parents and carers for internet safety 

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Look out for warning signs that someone or something online cannot be trusted

"It just seems too good to be true!" - Other common signs of a scam include contact that you weren't expecting or being asked for money or personal information (think: bank or contact details, passwords, or phone numbers). Scammers use other tactics to manipulate their victims into paying, like playing with your emotions, or building a sense of urgency so you are rushed into making a decision. If you aren't sure it's reliable, don't risk it.

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Tips for Parents and Carers - UK Safer Internet Centre

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"It just seems too good to be true!" - Other common signs of a scam include contact that you weren't expecting or being asked for money or personal information (think: bank or contact details, passwords, or phone numbers).

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14/1/25 Top Tips for 14-18year olds for internet safety

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14/1/25 Top Tips for 14-18year olds for internet safety

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Protect your accounts with strong and separate passwords and 2SV

Don't share passwords with other people and ensure they are hard to guess. Passwords shouldn't contain any personal information and are best when they're a mixture of letters, numbers and symbols. Most importantly, make sure each account you use has a separate password so that if one gets breached, the others aren't also at risk.
You should also set up two step verification (2SV) for your accounts where it's available. This means for some actions like changing your password or logging in on a new device, you will need to prove it's you. You are sent a code to another device you're already logged in on, which prevents scammers from gaining access with a password alone.

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Tips for 14-18s - UK Safer Internet Centre

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Don't share passwords with other people and ensure they are hard to guess. Passwords shouldn't contain any personal information and are best when they're a mixture of letters, numbers and symbols. Most importantly, make sure each account you use has a separate password so that if one gets breached, the others aren't also at risk.You should also set up two step verification (2SV) for your accounts where it's available.

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9/12/24 Camdom is yourdigital condom,blocking anyone from taking pictures,filming or recording audio withoutyour consent.

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9/12/24 Camdom is yourdigital condom,blocking anyone from taking pictures,filming or recording audio withoutyour consent.

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Camdom is your digital condom - by BILLY BOY

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Camdom is your digital condom, blocking anyone from taking pictures, filming or recording audio without your consent.

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9/12/24 Tik Tok to block teenagers from beauty filters

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9/12/24 Tik Tok to block teenagers from beauty filters

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TikTok to block teenagers from beauty filters over mental health concerns

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Social media platform under pressure to improve security as it announces plans to block under-13s from signing up

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9/12/24 Fears over online beauty filters

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9/12/24 Fears over online beauty filters

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‘Teenage girls are feeling vulnerable’: fears grow over online beauty filters

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Studies suggest children are having their self-esteem harmed by filters that ape the effects of cosmetic surgery

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Social media ban for UK under-16s ‘not on the cards’ for now, says minister

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Peter Kyle meets group of teenagers at NSPCC HQ who say imposing ban would reduce their social connections

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Instagram testing tool that removes all recommended posts

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Its reset feature would cleanse a user’s feed of personalised content suggested by algorithm.

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25/11/24 Social media ban for under 16's on he table says UK government

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25/11/24 Social media ban for under 16's on he table says UK government

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Social media ban for under-16s ‘on the table’ says UK government

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The tech secretary Peter Kyle also said he wanted an “assertive” approach from the regulator, Ofcom.

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11/11/24 Social media faces big changes under new Ofcom rules

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11/11/24 Social media faces big changes under new Ofcom rules

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Stuart Clarkson, Ellen Kirwin and Tom GerkenBBC News

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Online Safety Bill: Social media faces big changes under new Ofcom rules

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Ofcom warns social media companies could face fines if they don’t comply with the new Online Safety Bill

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4/11/24 How to easily spot a deepfake image

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4/11/24 How to easily spot a deepfake image

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Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

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Your support makes all the difference.
AI is well and truly here - and with it deepfake images.

Most people know you can't necessarily trust every image you see online as AI editing tools can help you make uncannily real images.

These are often known as ' deepfakes ', particularly when talking about the manipulation of someone's likeness. Sometimes AI features are included right in smartphones, like Google's Add Me feature on the Pixel 9, which lets the photo-taker be inserted into an image.

Platforms like Midjourney make AI image generation simple, and they can be seriously realistic - just think of the picture of the Pope wearing a white Balenciaga puffer jacket that went viral last year, fooling many a person.

If you want to get better at spotting images that aren't quite right, then you're in the right place. We've gathered some top tips to help you spot deepfake images, to help you avoid being fooled by too-good-to-be-true photos.
Zoom in on details
Whether it's completely AI-generated or simply heavily edited, there are some telltale signs that most deepfake images still exhibit. If you zoom in on things like people's eyes and the definition of the edge of their face, this can often show up inconsistencies or blurriness that can be a red flag.

For AI-generated imagery, hands and fingers are still frequently the site of issues, so any weirdness in these areas can be obvious. Plus, if a deepfake is made with a face replacement, you'll often see slight blurriness around the edge of the whole face. In videos, lips might not sync properly with the words they're supposedly saying, which can also clue you in.
Think emotionally
One thing that many face-swap apps or deepfake programmes can struggle with is particularly complex emotions - expressions on real faces are unbelievably precise and complicated, after all.

So, if you're looking at a beaming smile that seems a little too rigid, or a face that's unbelievably neutral, that could be another clue that something's up. This is easier to spot in videos, too, where an expression that doesn't seem quite in tune with what someone's saying can stand out more.
Look at the overall picture
This might seem a little hard to define, but most AI generators still default to creating images that don't quite look real, since they're almost too perfect. This might mean that a group photo has everyone lit almost exactly the same way, without any obscuring shadows or differences, or it might just make for a plasticky, wax-like aesthetic that feels a little 'off'.

While it might not always be easy to pin down a single pixel that concerns you, if you think a photo looks a little unreal then you should probably take the time to do more research into it.

a deepfake images on a computer screen

Don't ignore the background
Especially in photos of people, it can be tempting to focus on things like someone's face or hair to try to figure out if they're real, but the background of an image can often be just as obviously wrong. AI-generated backgrounds will sometimes have physical contradictions or architecture that doesn't actually make any sense, for instance.

This is also true for items and devices that might be out of focus or simply not in the centre of a shot - they're great ways to detect that AI has generated an image. This won't necessarily work as well on a deepfake where only the face has been swapped out, though.
Research real-world context
This tactic takes things outside the realm of technical expertise and microscopic analysis and simply stands as a reminder that you can always do a web search to see if the image you're looking at lines up with context. This is particularly useful if it's a purported photo or video of a public figure like a politician, as it can be quite easy to establish where they were at a given date or time, and if there's any reporting about what the image shows.

If it's a social media image of someone less notable, that might be more difficult, but it still pays to be a little careful and think things through. After all, leaping to conclusions based on an image that doesn't end up being accurate is potentially a little embarrassing.

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Worried about AI? How to easily spot a deepfake image

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4/11/24  The ‘Add Everyone’ Explicit WhatsApp Group

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4/11/24  The ‘Add Everyone’ Explicit WhatsApp Group

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Safeguarding Alert: The ‘Add Everyone’ Explicit WhatsApp Group

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Learn about the dangers of “Add Everyone” WhatsApp groups and how to protect children from online predators. This article provides essential information on internet safety, privacy settings, and steps to take if your child encounters harmful content.

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Tech-Facilitated Abuse: The Dark Side of Digital Life

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"Women, who are disproportionately affected by this type of crime, deserve ownership of their images, and should have the right to use social media platforms without fear that those closest to them can abuse their images in whichever way they choose.

"Politicians and lawmakers should be working with victims and survivors of these crimes to ensure they meet the needs of those who are most affected by them."

Ellesha agrees, describing it as a "big step in the right direction", adding that... "it would mean that image-based abuse gets treated more seriously and not washed and watered down so much by the terminology in the laws at the moment."

"Survivors are having to take on billion-dollar tech platforms all on their own, without the law on their side."

Professor Clare McGlynn, campaign partner and a world-leading expert on image-based abuse, tells GLAMOUR: "Women are being systematically failed by the legal system. The criminal law is full of holes, and women's experiences are not taken seriously by the police. It is also extremely difficult to get material deleted or taken down from the internet, even after a criminal conviction."

"For too long, survivors of image-based abuse have been ignored, their experiences trivialised and dismissed. Women's rights to privacy and free speech are being systematically breached, with society as a whole suffering. Women deserve a holistic, comprehensive response to these devastating and life-shattering harms."

Rebecca Hitchen from EVAW adds, "The laws on image-based abuse are patchy and inconsistent, meaning the odds are stacked against victims when they report this abuse to the police.

"There is currently no standardised, legally enforceable way for victims and survivors to get abusive imagery taken down from the internet, or access any kind of compensation. Survivors are having to take on billion-dollar tech platforms all on their own, without the law on their side. This must change."

Are you paying attention, Sir Keir Starmer and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak? If so, we strongly urge you to adopt the Image-Based Abuse law into your party manifestos. Here's what we're calling for:
Introduce an Image-Based Abuse law
The Image-Based Abuse Law must - as a starting point - include the following commitments:
1. Strengthen criminal laws about creating, taking and sharing intimate images without consent (including sexually explicit deepfakes) This would make it illegal to create, take, share, threaten to share, or solicit any intimate image without consent. 2. Improve civil laws for survivors to take action against perpetrators and tech companies This means forcing platforms and perpetrators to take down and delete abusive content, seek damages and apply for protective orders against perpetrators. 3. Prevent image-based abuse through comprehensive relationships, sex and health education *Names and some details have been changed to protect victims and survivors' identities and safety. Revenge Porn Helpline provides advice, guidance and support to victims of intimate image-based abuse over the age of 18 who live in the UK. You can call them on 0345 6000 459. The Cyber Helpline provides free, expert help and advice to people targeted by online crime and harm in the UK and USA. This education must respond to young people's lived realities, particularly the way our lives - including our dating lives and the abuse we face - are increasingly experienced online. 4. Fund specialist services that provide support to victims and survivors of image-based abuse Proceeds from the 'tech tax' and fines must be used to sustainably fund vital services which provide expertise and support to survivors who often have nowhere else to turn. 5. Create an Online Abuse Commission to hold tech companies accountable for image-based abuse This regulator must monitor and enforce action against tech companies, including making sure illegal content stays taken down, blocking sites for non-compliance, enabling individuals to report platforms for poor practice, and providing an independent commissioner who would champion and advocate for victims and survivors of online abuse.
Elena Michael, campaign partner and director of Not Your Porn, notes, "The painful and infuriating truth is that it is within our grasp to make a comprehensive system of protections and preventions to fight image-based sexual abuse.

"This law is the first step to making this long overdue system a reality. No more excuses. No more putting the burden on survivors to protect themselves and circumvent illogical barriers to accessing justice. And, absolutely, no more facilitating preventable harm by government inaction.

"If the parties are serious about understanding the risks posed by image-based abuse and the need to tackle it, as they have said they do before the general election was called, then they will commit to enacting this law."

Deborah Joseph, GLAMOUR's European Editorial Director, further notes, "Earlier this year, GLAMOUR held a roundtable on digital consent and the threat of deepfaking to women - where we learned the harrowing reality of women's experience with image-based abuse.

"Hearing from the everyday people who have experienced this was heartbreaking, and it is terrifying to know that there is currently no current comprehensive legal framework in place to protect women against this crime. We want to see the next government wake up and take the threat of image-based abuse seriously, actioning meaningful change to protect women both in society and online."

A dedicated Image-Based Abuse law is not too much to ask for; in fact, it's just the beginning. The next government must stop failing women like Niamh, Ellesha, and Jodie and start prioritising image-based abuse as a national emergency - and we'll be holding them accountable every step of the way.

For more from Glamour UK's Lucy Morgan, follow her on Instagram @lucyalexxandra.

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We're calling on the next government to protect women and girls from image-based abuse

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GLAMOUR is teaming up with the End Violence Against Women Coalition, Not Your Porn, and Professor Clare McGlynn to demand an Image-Based Abuse Act. Read more...

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How Apple, Google, and Microsoft can save us from AI deepfakes

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To combat AI-driven disinformation, tech giants must collaborate to adopt these open standards. The absence of Apple and X raises concerns.

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Safety first? AberCPC/Alamy

In the modern world we are all constantly connected, but this comes with risks. As most cybersecurity specialists will tell you, the biggest vulnerability in any system is the user - whether at home or work.

The most common ways in which hackers break into systems are via attacks on users such as phishing, rather than by breaching technical infrastructure. As much as 94% of all malware is delivered via email, while phishing is the primary means of attack in 41% of all incidents. This risk is also increasing, with 75% of security experts reporting an overall rise in cyberattacks year on year in 2023.

Many corporate IT teams have been spending heavily on training users to be more wary of such attacks. However, this has tended to focus on best practice in the workplace. In public areas, where people's guards might be lowered, it's quite a different story.

I've recently seen several examples of this for myself. As a certified ethical hacker with years of experience in cybersecurity and contributing to cybercriminal investigations, I can't tell you how easy it is for these kinds of situations to be exploited by bad actors.

In the first incident, I was in a shop buying some household items. While I queued, staff were asking customers for email addresses to send them e-receipts for their items.

This might sound innocent, and it's surely better for the environment than paper receipts, but it could easily be exploited by a savvy hacker who might be listening. Combined with contextual information such as location, item and cost, they could craft a phishing email that would probably fool most people. It could be an invite to complete a feedback survey, for instance, or a discount code for their next visit to the same store.

On another occasion I was at a live concert. While we waited for the show to begin, an individual in front of me was browsing his phone. From observing for just a short time, I ascertained his name, job, address, vehicle, phone number and even bank balance. Again, this could have been used by a hacker in a number of malicious ways, including posing as the individual to steal their identity or even coercing them to act against their employer, say by threatening to reveal sensitive information.

We therefore all need to be mindful of the information that we are exposing to strangers when we are in public. Equally, we need to think about what devices we are using, and what we are connecting them to.

Unsecured network risks

While at the same concert, I saw numerous people connecting to the stadium wifi, which was totally unprotected and required no authentication. When you log in to an unsecured network, it exposes your device to risks such as evil twin attacks.

Evil twin attacks involve the attacker creating a wifi hotspot, which can be set to any name they choose, such as "stadium wifi 2" or whatever. When an unprotected device connects to this network, the attacker can potentially steal the data they are transmitting.

It can also be used for other nefarious purposes such as snooping on confidential networks, injecting malware into downloads or "man-in-the-middle" attacks in which the hacker poses as the other person in a communication, again usually to steal information.

People can be exposed to similar threats on unsecured networks through another hacking ruse known as packet sniffing. This is where a hacker uses a program to monitor the data moving over the network and steal information.

You can avoid these risks by logging in from a virtual private network (VPN), not that I saw anyone doing that at the concert. More generally, people can protect themselves from identity theft by, for instance, having anti-phishing systems in their inboxes.

However, the easiest defence of all is to be alert to the risks and take sensible precautions in public. By protecting your data and devices, no matter where you are, you can avoid becoming one of the victims.

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As an ethical hacker, I can't believe the risks people routinely take when they access the internet in public

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If you're tempted to do a make a couple of cheeky payments while waiting for the band to come on, think again.

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Action Fraud: stay safe online after £1.4 million lost from email and social media account hacking in the last year | Action Fraud

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Action Fraud is warning people to provide an extra layer of protection and enable the 2-Step Verification (2SV) option, as more than 33,600 people had their social media or email accounts hacked

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25/9/24 Sexual harassment at work law changing Oct 24

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25/9/24 Sexual harassment at work law changing Oct 24

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Sexual harassment at work: new regime from October 2024 - Crossland Employment Solicitors

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A new proactive duty on employers to prevent workplace sexual harassment will come into force in October 2024. This will be accompanied by updated guidance from t…

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Panorama - Can We Live Without Our Phones?

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What happens when smartphones are taken away from kids for a week? With the help of two families and lots of remote cameras, Panorama finds out.

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Protect Your Child The Hidden Dangers of Posting Back to School Photos on Social Media

It's that time of year again. Social media feeds are filled with proud mums and dads sharing images of their children in their new school uniforms on their First Day or First Day Back.

While social media is a way to keep close family and friends updated on your children's milestones-especially if they live far away-it's crucial to remember that social media profiles aren't just limited to those we know and trust.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when sharing back-to-school photos, or any other pictures of your children, on social media as precautionary measures:

#1 Sharing Back-to-School Photos Can Reveal Personal Information

Consider this: when you post a back-to-school picture, you might be revealing more than you intend, such as:

Your child's age, appearance and other personal information

Where you live or personal details about your home

The school your child attends

If you haven't disabled location settings, you might unintentionally share your home address or the exact location where the photo was taken. Images contain visual information that can be directly seen, but they also include metadata-hidden data that can reveal GPS coordinates or other details about where and when the photo was taken.

#2 Innocent Photos Can Become Data for Malicious Purposes

In the age of Ai (artificial intelligence), even innocent photos can be exploited. Ai technology is already being used to create and share child sexual abuse material. The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) has identified a significant and growing threat where AI technology is being exploited to produce child sexual abuse material (CSAM). In their July 2024 report they found that 'AI-generated child sexual abuse videos, primarily deepfakes, have started circulating, highlighting rapid technological advancements in AI models/generators. Increasingly, deepfake videos shared in dark web forums take adult pornographic videos and add a child or adult's face using AI tools. Images and videos are then shared and increasingly used to financially exploit young people.

#3 Risks of Identity Theft and Cybercrime

Personal data exposed through social media can be a gateway for identity theft and other cybercrimes. Cybercriminals can use details from photos-such as your child's name, age, or school-to gain access to sensitive information. This can lead to a range of damaging consequences, from hacked accounts to financial fraud or exploitation.

#4 Increase in Cybercrime

The implications of sharing personal data online extend beyond financial theft. Cybercriminals can use data they obtain to damage credit scores, engage in voice phishing scams via popular messaging apps, mimicking loved ones voices and even use information to manipulate or scam family members. This has now moved up a level where a video can even be sent with your loved ones face using deep fake technology asking desperately for money to be sent. In fact online fraud, hacking, exploitation and scams are operated on an industrial scale and are amongst the Top 3 rising crimes, as they are amongst the top rated profit making activities.

#5 Emotional Toll and Social Consequences

Beyond financial and security risks, there's the emotional toll and social impact. Online bullying and public humiliation are real dangers, especially as children grow older and become more active online. Once images or videos are shared, they can be used to target, bully or exploit children and teenagers, leading to emotional distress, isolation and perhaps even self harm.

#6 Consent and Your Child's Digital Footprint

As children grow up, they develop a digital footprint-often shaped initially by their parents. Children can't fully grasp the concept of consent or the long-term implications of their images being shared online. As parents, it's important to consider whether your child would want these images online when they get older. They might not appreciate what they see as embarrassing childhood photos - being accessible to peers or strangers.

#7 Set a Positive Example for Your Children

Children learn by example. As parents, we need to demonstrate responsible behaviour with technology. Try to keep texting, checking and scrolling to a minimum at family times, balancing your screen time with device-free moments. Social media can tempt us into comparing our lives with others, but it's essential to remember that we're not missing out. Our kids notice how much time we spend on phones and they'll follow suit.

Finally, keep in mind that we are the first generation of parents raising children in the digital age. So we're going to make mistakes. But the standards we set now will shape how our kids and future generations interact with technology. Let's strive to raise well-balanced kids who understand the importance of privacy, consent and time away from tech as they grow up in an increasingly connected world.

While there is plenty of talk about 'responsible Ai', 'safety by design' and protecting children and young people in the news, it's increasingly apparent that talk is cheap and profit is winning out in the online world - so equipping families with the knowledge, skills and tools to protect themselves is essential.

Keeping you in the digital loop

Wayne

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Protect Your Child The Hidden Dangers of Posting Back to School Photos on Social Media - Wayne Denner

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Discover the risks of sharing back-to-school photos on social media, including privacy concerns, identity theft, and the emotional toll on children.

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Online sextortion is a form of financial fraud that has become increasingly prevalent over the past year.

In some cases in the UK, US and Australia teenagers have killed themselves after being targeted by cybercriminals, who typically operate out of west Africa or south-east Asia.

The fraudsters seek to extort victims, typically boys, by tricking them into sending intimate pictures of themselves and then demanding money by threatening to release the images online - including to friends and family.

Here is a guide to how sextortion fraudsters work and how to deal with such attacks.

How do sextortion attacks happen?

The attacks typically take place over social media and messaging platforms. According to data from the Internet Watch Foundation, a child safety watchdog, teenage boys are the most likely victims but incidents involving girls have risen sharply since the beginning of the year.

In sextortion attempts, a chat over social media becomes flirtatious unexpectedly and quickly. In examples involving boys, they are sometimes sent pictures of the "girl" in the conversation, which are in fact random pictures taken from social media profiles. Examples heard by Childline, a counselling service, indicate that contact has been made on platforms including Instagram, Snapchat, Wizz, Discord and the video chat app Omegle. In some cases, the victim is encouraged to switch to a different platform, such as a private messaging app.

They are then asked to send intimate selfies in image or video format. Once that happens, law enforcement and child safety sources say the tone of communication changes sharply, escalating immediately to demands for money alongside a threat that the material will be shared online, including with friends and family on the victim's social media profile.

Blackmailers are aware that youngsters don't have access to large amount of money or credit cards, so can demand small amounts as Amazon gift cards or by PayPal, but have also been known to keep coming back for more.

What should you do if your child has fallen for a sextortion scam?

The National Crime Agency, which is taking a leading role in tackling sextortion in the UK, says you should not pay the perpetrator, as there is no guarantee this will stop the threats. You should also stop communicating with the fraudster and block them on social media and messaging platforms. And you should keep evidence such as messages, images, phone numbers and bank account details that could be used to identify the perpetrator.

One of the first challenges, says Det Supt Michelle Findlay, the Police Scotland lead on sextortion, "is that sometimes people who are reporting don't understand that they are actually victims. They think that they are complicit in the offending. So we have to help young people understand that they have been targeted.

"There's an embarrassment factor at play - you don't want your parents or your peers to know you've been caught out. Young people feel they are the ones who are technologically savvy and they should know better. Explain that the people perpetrating these crimes are very organised and very clever."

The shame of being taken in is a big driver of people's silence, says Amanda Dashwood, the sextortion lead for the Revenge Porn Helpline. "A lot of people don't see the point in going to the police because they know the perpetrator is overseas, and their primary goal is to stop the content being shared, or if it has been, to get it removed."

But police forces across the UK encourage young people and their parents to report these incidents, promising to treat victims respectfully and without judgment and underlining that it helps them to prevent future crimes.

The NSPCC and the Internet Watch Foundation operate Report Remove, a service that allows children to anonymously flag intimate images or videos of themselves that they have sent to sextortion fraudsters. The service turns those images into a "hash", or digital fingerprint, which is shared with major tech platforms, which can take the image down or prevent it from being uploaded. However, the service is not able to locate the image on private messaging services such as WhatsApp, which are encrypted.

What can families do to help children?

Experts recommend creating an environment in which children feel they can discuss difficult or embarrassing matters.

Dr Linda Blair, a clinical psychologist who specialises in working with adolescents and their families, says families should create everyday opportunities to make talking easy, such as at a meal or during regular car trips. She adds that when a child approaches you to talk, you should underline that you are paying attention by putting away your phone or devices.

Blair also counsels against overreacting. "Sextortion is terrible, but so is any act that takes advantage of your child and abuses their trust. If you're a bit calmer about the topic, they will be as well."

Parents should describe very clearly what a sextortion threat looks like and how other young people have dealt with it - victims report they don't feel as isolated when they hear that others have experienced something similar - as well as chatting regularly about online life in general. You can't emphasise often enough that you lose control of an image online as soon as you send it to another person, whoever they are or purport to be.

Tamsin McNally of the Internet Watch Foundation says: "Young people need to be aware that who they are talking to online may not be who they say they are. It can be very easy to go along with something in the moment, but if that happens, they should have in the back of their mind there are places to help them, and we're not judging them at all."

In the UK, the youth suicide charity Papyrus can be contacted on 0800 068 4141 or email pat@papyrus-uk.org, and in the UK and Ireland Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is at 988 or chat for support. You can also text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis text line counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org

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How can children be protected from online sextortion fraud?

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Criminals are tricking young people into sending intimate images, then demanding money. Experts explain how to deal with these attacks

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12/8/24 Tackling online content that stirs up hatred

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12/8/24 Tackling online content that stirs up hatred

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Tackling online content that stirs up hatred, provokes violence and spreads disinformation
Tackling illegal content online is a major priority for Ofcom. In recent days, we have seen appalling acts of violence in the UK, with questions raised about the role of social media in this context.
The UK's Online Safety Act will put new duties on tech firms to protect their users from illegal content, which under the Act can include content involving hatred, disorder, provoking violence or certain instances of disinformation.
What will tech firms have to do?
When the new duties are in force, later this year, tech firms will have three months to assess the risk of illegal content on their platforms, and will then be required to take appropriate steps to stop it appearing, and act quickly to remove it when they become aware of it. The largest tech firms will in due course need to go even further - by consistently applying their terms of service, which often include banning things like hate speech, inciting violence, and harmful disinformation.

If tech firms don't comply, we will have a broad range of enforcement powers at our disposal. These include the power to impose significant financial penalties for breaches of the safety duties. The regime focuses on platforms' systems and processes rather than the content itself that is on their platforms. So Ofcom's role will not involve us making decisions about individual posts or accounts, or requiring specific pieces of content to be taken down.

As part of our wider engagement with tech platforms we are already working to understand what actions they are taking in preparation for these new rules. Platforms can act now - there is no need to wait for the new laws to come into force before sites and apps are made safer for users.
When will the Act come into force?
We're working to implement the Act so we can enforce it as soon as possible. To do this, we are required to consult on codes of practice and guidance, after which the new safety duties on platforms will become enforceable. We expect the first set of duties - regarding illegal content - will come into force from around the end of this year.

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Tackling online content that stirs up hatred, provokes violence and spreads disinformation | Ofcom

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Tackling illegal content online is a major priority for Ofcom. In recent days, we have seen appalling acts of violence in the UK, with questions raised about the role of social media in this cont

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Two in five people say they have seen at least one deepfake in the last six months - including depictions of sexual content, politicians, and scam adverts

Only one in ten are confident in their ability to spot them

Ofcom sets out what tech firms can do to tackle harmful deepfakes

As new Ofcom research reveals the prevalence of online deepfakes, we look at what can be done to tackle those that cause harm.

Deepfakes are videos, pictures or audio clips made with artificial intelligence to look real. New Ofcom research, published today, has found that 43% of people aged 16+ say they have seen at least one deepfake online in the last six months - rising to 50% among children aged 8-15.[1]

Among adults who say they have seen deepfake content, one in seven (14%) say they have seen a sexual deepfake.[2] Most of the available evidence indicates that the overwhelming majority of this content features women, many of whom suffer from anxiety, PTSD and suicidal ideation because of their experiences.

Of those who say they have seen a sexual deepfake, two thirds (64%) say it was of a celebrity or public figure, 15% say it was of someone they know, while 6% say it depicted themselves. Worryingly, 17% thought it depicted someone under the age of 18.

The most common type of deepfake 8-15-year-olds say they have encountered was a 'funny or satirical deepfake' (58%), followed by a deepfake scam advert (32%).

Fewer than one in ten (9%) of people aged 16+ say they are confident in their ability to identify a deepfake - although older children aged 8-15 are more likely to say so (20%).

Different deepfakes

Recent technological advances in Generative AI (GenAI) have transformed the landscape of deepfake production in the last two years. In a discussion paper, published today, we look at different types of deepfakes and what can be done to reduce the risk of people encountering harmful ones - without undermining the creation of legitimate and innocuous content.[3]

GenAI and synthetic content can augment TV and film; enhance photos and videos; create entertaining or satirical material; and aid the development of online safety technologies. It can also be used to facilitate industry training, medical treatments and criminal investigations.

Some deepfakes, however, can cause significant harm, particularly in the following ways:

Deepfakes that demean - by falsely depicting someone in a particular scenario, for example sexual activity. They can be used to extort money or force them to share further sexual content.

Deepfakes that defraud - by misrepresenting someone else's identity. They can be used in fake adverts and romance scams.

Deepfakes that disinform - by spreading falsehoods widely across the internet, to influence opinion on key political or societal issues, such as elections, war, religion or health.

In reality, there will be cases where a deepfake cuts across multiple categories. Women journalists, for example, are often the victims of sexualised deepfakes, which not only demean those featured but may contribute towards a chilling effect on critical journalism.

What tech firms could do

Addressing harmful deepfakes is likely to require action from all parts of the technology supply chain - from the developers that create GenAI models through to the user-facing platforms that act as spaces for deepfake content to be shared and amplified.

We have looked at four routes tech firms could take to mitigate the risks of deepfakes:

Prevention: AI model developers can use prompt filters to prevent certain types of content from being created; remove harmful content from model training datasets; and use output filters that automatically block harmful content from being generated. They can also conduct 'red teaming' exercises - a type of AI model evaluation used to identify vulnerabilities.[4]

Embedding: AI model developers and online platforms can embed imperceptible watermarks on content, to make it detectable using a deep learning algorithm; attach metadata to content when it is created; and automatically add visible labels to AI-generated content when it is uploaded.

Detection: Online platforms can use automated and human-led content reviews to help distinguish real from fake content, even where no contextual data has been attached to it. For example, machine learning classifiers that have been trained on known deepfake content.

Enforcement: Online services can set clear rules within their terms of service and community guidelines about the types of synthetic content that can be created and shared on their platform, and act against users that breach those rules, for example by taking down content and suspending or removing user accounts.

These are not requirements, but all the above interventions could help mitigate the creation and spread of harmful deepfakes. However, there is no silver bullet solution, and tackling them requires a multi-pronged approach.

What Ofcom is doing

Illegal deepfakes can have devastating consequences, and are often targeted at women. We're working at pace to consult on how platforms should comply with their new duties under the Online Safety Act. That'll include guidance on protecting women and girls.

If regulated platforms fail to meet their duties when the time comes, we will have a broad range of enforcement powers at our disposal to ensure they are held fully accountable for the safety of their users.
Gill Whitehead, Ofcom's Online Safety Group Director
When the new duties under the Online Safety Act come into force next year, regulated services like social media firms and search engines will have to assess the risk of illegal content or activity on their platforms - including many types of deepfake content (though not all types are captured by the online safety regime) - take steps to stop it appearing, and act quickly to remove it when they become aware of it.

In our draft illegal harms and children's safety codes, we have recommended robust measures that services can take to tackle illegal and harmful deepfakes. These include measures relating to user verification and labelling schemes, recommender algorithm design, content moderation, and user reporting and complaints.

These represent our 'first-edition' codes and we are already looking at how we can strengthen them in the future as our evidence grows.

We are also encouraging tech firms that are not regulated under the Online Safety Act, such as AI model developers and hosts, to make their technology safer by design using measures we have set out today.

Notes

1. Source: Ofcom Deepfakes Polls, June 2024. 2,000 nationally representative people in the UK aged 16+ were interviewed; and 1,000 nationally representative people in Great Britain aged 8-15 were interviewed.

2. Of respondents aged 18+ (n=151) who thought they had seen a sexual deepfake.

3. Discussion papers contribute to the work of Ofcom by sharing the results of our research and encouraging debate in areas of Ofcom's remit. However, they do not necessarily represent the concluded position of Ofcom on particular matters. Today's paper is not formal guidance for regulated services. It does not recommend or require specific actions.

4. Today we have also published a discussion paper on Red Teaming for GenAI Harms, which sets out 10 good practices that firms can adopt today to maximise the impact of any red teaming exercises they already conduct.

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A deep dive into deepfakes that demean, defraud and disinform

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As new Ofcom research reveals the prevalence of online deepfakes, we look at what can be done to tackle those that cause harm.

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5/8/24 Snapchat includes new features to protect against sextortion

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5/8/24 Snapchat includes new features to protect against sextortion

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Snapchat includes new features to protect against sextortion - UK Safer Internet Centre

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Snapchat has announced some new features aimed to support users online against sextortion and other online harms.

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Apple is failing to effectively monitor its platforms or scan for images and videos of the sexual abuse of children, child safety experts allege, which is raising concerns about how the company can handle growth in the volume of such material associated with artificial intelligence.

The UK's National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) accuses Apple of vastly undercounting how often child sexual abuse material (CSAM) appears in its products. In a year, child predators used Apple's iCloud, iMessage and Facetime to store and exchange CSAM in a higher number of cases in England and Wales alone than the company reported across all other countries combined, according to police data obtained by the NSPCC.

Through data gathered via freedom of information requests and shared exclusively with the Guardian, the children's charity found Apple was implicated in 337 recorded offenses of child abuse images between April 2022 and March 2023 in England and Wales. In 2023, Apple made just 267 reports of suspected CSAM on its platforms worldwide to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), which is in stark contrast to its big tech peers, with Google reporting more than 1.47m and Meta reporting more than 30.6m, per NCMEC's annual report.

All US-based tech companies are obligated to report all cases of CSAM they detect on their platforms to NCMEC. The Virginia-headquartered organization acts as a clearinghouse for reports of child abuse from around the world, viewing them and sending them to the relevant law enforcement agencies. iMessage is an encrypted messaging service, meaning Apple is unable to see the contents of users' messages, but so is Meta's WhatsApp, which made roughly 1.4m reports of suspected CSAM to NCMEC in 2023.

"There is a concerning discrepancy between the number of UK child abuse image crimes taking place on Apple's services and the almost negligible number of global reports of abuse content they make to authorities," said Richard Collard, head of child safety online policy at the NSPCC. "Apple is clearly behind many of their peers in tackling child sexual abuse when all tech firms should be investing in safety and preparing for the roll out of the Online Safety Act in the UK."

Apple declined to provide a comment for this article. The company instead directed the Guardian to statements it made last August, in which it said it had decided not to proceed with a program scanning iCloud photos for CSAM because it instead chose a path that "prioritizes the security and privacy of [its] users".

In late 2022, Apple abandoned plans to roll out the iCloud photo-scanning tool. Apple's tool, called neuralMatch, would have scanned images before they were uploaded to the iCloud's online photo storage, comparing them against a database of known child abuse imagery via mathematical fingerprints known as hash values.

However, the software was subject to pushback by digital rights groups, who voiced concerns that it would inevitably be used to compromise the privacy and security of all iCloud users. Child safety advocates decried the rollback of the feature.

"Apple does not detect CSAM in the majority of its environments at scale, at all," said Sarah Gardner, chief executive officer of Heat Initiative, a Los Angeles non-profit focused on child protection. "They are clearly underreporting and have not invested in trust and safety teams to be able to handle this."

Apple's June announcement that it will launch an artificial intelligence system, Apple Intelligence, has been met with alarm by child safety experts.

"The race to roll out Apple AI is worrying when AI-generated child abuse material is putting children at risk and impacting the ability of police to safeguard young victims, especially as Apple pushed back embedding technology to protect children," said Collard. Apple says the AI system, which was created in partnership with OpenAI, will customize user experiences, automate tasks and increase privacy for users.

In 2023, NCMEC received more than 4,700 reports of AI-generated CSAM, and has said it expects the number of such reports to increase in the future. Since AI models able to create CSAM have been trained on "real life" images of child abuse, AI-generated images also are implicated in the victimization of children. The Guardian reported in June that child predators are utilizing AI to create new images of their favorite victims, further exacerbating the trauma of survivors or child abuse imagery.

"The company is moving ahead to a territory that we know could be incredibly detrimental and dangerous to children without the track record of being able to handle it," said Gardner. "Apple is a black hole."

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UK watchdog accuses Apple of failing to report sexual images of children

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Exclusive: NSPCC finds Apple implicated in more cases of predators sharing child abuse imagery in England and Wales alone than the company reported globally in a year

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8/7/24 Snapchat introduces new safety features

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8/7/24 Snapchat introduces new safety features

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Snapchat on Tuesday announced a new suite of safety features, including updates to its account blocking functionality and enhanced friending safeguards, making it difficult for strangers to contact users on its platform. The new move comes amid concerns over predators exploiting teens on social media apps, which often results in severe incidents, including sextortion.

One of the latest updates to address such issues is improving Snapchat's existing user blocking tool. It will block new friend requests sent from bad actors who were already blocked by the user when they are sent using other accounts created on the same device. This will help further limit outreach from other existing or new accounts created by the blocked account, Snap said in a statement.

Snapchat will also introduce more frequent reminders informing them about which friends they share their location with on the Snap Map. Additionally, Snapchat will gain a simplified location-sharing feature, which will make it easier to customize which friends can see their location. Snap recommends that users only share their live location with family members or close friends.

Alongside the new location-sharing updates, Snapchat is expanding in-app pop-up warnings, first launched in 2023, that appear if they add a friend who doesn't share mutual friends or is not a part of their contacts. The update will add another pop-up message to warn users if they receive a chat from someone who has been blocked or reported by other users or is from a region where the teen's friend network is not typically located. This feature will initially be available in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Nordics and parts of Europe at launch.

Another new friending safeguard will prevent the delivery of friend requests if a teen sends or receives a request from someone they do not share mutual friends with and the person has a history of accessing Snapchat in locations often linked with scams. This is an addition to the earlier feature that restricted teens from getting friend suggestions of an account in Quick Add or Search unless they have multiple mutual connections. The new feature is currently available in a select few countries and will soon be launched in India in a more localized form, the company said.

"Our newest safety features are all about supporting genuine friendships, empowering teens to make smart choices, and ensuring that every Snapchatter feels secure and confident while using our app," said Uthara Ganesh, Head of Public Policy, South Asia, Snap, in a statement.

Snapchat has been quite popular among teens, with over 20 million using the app in the U.S. alone, per Snap CEO Evan Spiegel during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in January. However, the app - alongside other social media platforms - is often criticized for not taking significant steps to safeguard minor users.

In 2022, Snap introduced a Family Center to let parents monitor their teens' activity on the platform. It was launched in response to the regulatory pressure social networks faced to protect minors. However, Spiegel stated in his comments to Senator Alex Padilla in January that only around 200,000 parents use its parental supervision controls.

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Snapchat introduces new safety features to limit bad actors from contacting users | TechCrunch

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Snapchat has launched new safety features, including updates to its account blocking functionality and enhanced friending safeguards.

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24/6/24 Tik Tok launches media literacy hub to help users spot misinformation before the General Election

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24/6/24 Tik Tok launches media literacy hub to help users spot misinformation before the General Election

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TikTok launches media literacy hub to help users spot misinformation

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The video-sharing platform has introduced the new hub ahead of the General Election.

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We are currently working to fix the problem and should have it resolved shortly.

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17/6/24 As many of our apprentices are parents we are sharing this resource on Tips for helping children stay safe online

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17/6/24 As many of our apprentices are parents we are sharing this resource on Tips for helping children stay safe online

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Sexting, nudes, dick-pics, or 'self-generated' child sexual abuse material has been the subject of research that we, at the PIER, have just finished on behalf of the IWF. 'Self-generated' child sexual abuse materials are images and videos which are taken by children and then shared either:

willingly, usually with a boyfriend/girlfriend, or

unwillingly, through coercion, or

shared by a third party without their consent.

Some of these images end up being distributed, sometimes sold, on the open and dark web by those with a sexual interest in children (see notes section, number 1). The National Crime Agency estimate that there are between 550,000-850,000 people in the UK who pose a sexual risk to children, and a large number of these will operate online. The IWF report that in the last year alone, there were more than 250,000 webpages assessed by them as containing 'self-generated' child sexual abuse material, with an increase in imagery of primary-aged children.

This blog gives a brief overview of what parents, teachers and children told us about these images and what you can do to help to keep children safe online.

The 307 children who took part in our research told us about their experiences of growing up in a digital world, where they talk to their friends, game and do their schoolwork online. Many described receiving unwanted sexual images and some commented that it has become normalised and part of their lives. The apps they use, such as Snapchat and TikTok are also used by perpetrators to talk to children and groom them into sharing sexual images.

This is a serious safeguarding issue, with wide-reaching consequences that we all need to learn more about. So, what can we do?

1. Talk to your kids.

The children told us that the sending and receiving of these images often starts being an issue in secondary school. One child explained that "sharing images happens so much at school, more [needs] to be done about it". IWF research has found that the age of children being abused online is getting younger and the parents we interviewed told us that they weren't sure when to start talking to their children about this issue. Others explained that their child had shared or received images, or one of their peer group had, and they weren't sure what to do or where to go for help.

The most important thing is to talk, and keep talking, to your children about these issues. The children who took part told us that they want their parents to stay calm if they have a problem and offer non-judgemental support. They were also concerned that their parents/carers would remove their phones which makes them feel less likely to disclose any abuse.

The IWF recommend thinking of the acronym . This refers to:

to your child about online sexual abuse. Start the conversation - and listen to their concerns and ensure that your children are not blamed or shamed if this happens to them.

ground rules about the way you use technology as a family.

about the platforms and apps your child loves. Take an interest in their online life.

how to use tools, apps and settings that can help to keep your child safe online.

2. Sex and Relationship Education - Be aware that children are learning about sex from the internet and online pornography.

Children told us that their sex and relationships education is often inadequate or inappropriate, so they turn to the internet to learn about sex. They explained that their parents don't often talk about sex and relationships with them, and parents / carers commented that they found the conversations difficult and embarrassing.

Research has shown that children are viewing pornography at an increasingly younger age and almost 80% of those surveyed had viewed violent pornography before the age of 18 . Teachers told us of some students who were gathering sexual images of other children, so there is also a 'collecting culture' emerging, which needs to be addressed. Talking to our children about healthy relationships can help challenge some of these behaviours and what they are seeing online.

3. Make yourself aware of all the help and guidance available.

Some of the parents / carers we interviewed didn't know where to turn for advice. Many internet safety organisations have sections for both children and parents about online safety, some of which are linked below:

The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) offer guidance to parents on the issue of nude selfies , and tips on how to 'Ask the Awkward' which encourages regular chats with your child about online relationships.

The American National Center for Missing and Exploited Children have recently launched a new interactive resource , specifically on sextortion 4 called 'No Escape Room' (see notes section, number 2).

Some of these organisations also offer tailored advice if your child has additional needs.

4. Know what to do if an image of your child has been shared online.

There is also a useful tool called Report Remove . It is for children and young people aged under 18 in the UK, and enables them to report sexual images and videos of themselves and ask for them to be removed them from the internet. Images can often be removed from UK websites within hours.

5. Understand how perpetrators are targeting children online.

Our research into the dark web forums showed that perpetrators target children on the platforms that we all use in our daily lives. The forums we analysed showed how easy it is for offenders to build trust and groom children by chatting to them and asking them to do online challenges or games, prior to making sexual requests. It is important for children to understand that offenders often pretend to be someone of their age, or with the same interests as them. Once again, talking to children about these issues is of huge importance.

Finally, look out for the forthcoming campaign, being developed by the IWF from this research, which will be launched later this summer and aims to get everyone talking about the issue and help keep children safer online.

References:

IWF, (2023). Hotline reports 'shocking' rise in the sextortion of boys . [Online] Available at: https://www.iwf.org.uk/news-media/news/hotline-reports-shocking-rise-in-the-sextortion-of-boys/ [Accessed 22 April 2024]

Notes:

1. If you want to know more about the dark web, the National Crime Agency have launched a new short introductory film on their CEOP website: https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/articles/dark-web-explained/ which they explain is only suitable for adults.

2. The worst-case scenario of this was highlighted recently in the tragic death of a boy who took his life, after being blackmailed online by someone who had accessed some nude/semi-nude images of him. This is termed 'sextortion' and the IWF report that there has been a "shocking" increase in this form of abuse. (IWF, 2023)

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Tips for helping children stay safe online.

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A brief overview of what parents, teachers and children told us about sexting, nudes, dick-pics, 'self-generated' images and what you can do to help to keep children safe online.

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10/6/24 Tik Tok users being fed misleading election news

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10/6/24 Tik Tok users being fed misleading election news

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The fictional profiles represent a range of voters in battleground constituencies across the UK, giving an insight into what content is promoted to different types of people. The profiles are private, with no friends. They just like, follow and watch content relevant to their character traits informed by the Natcen research.

I examined the feeds of the profiles of three of these fictional voters in the former "red wall" constituency of Bishop Auckland, a target for Labour which is currently held by the Conservatives - and where our Undercover Voters are younger.

Their social media feeds revealed that, while other sites have also experienced a flurry of political content, TikTok had the most lively conversation, particularly among younger voters.

TikTok has boomed since the last election. According to media regulator Ofcom, it was the fastest-growing source of news in the UK for the second year in a row in 2023 - used by 10% of adults in this way. One in 10 teenagers say it is their most important news source.

TikTok is engaging a new generation in the democratic process. Whether you use the social media app or not, what is unfolding on its site could shape narratives about the election and its candidates - including in ways that may be unfounded.

Content promoted to Undercover Voter character Jack, a disaffected 31-year-old, include TikToks misrepresenting remarks made by Labour politicians in speech bubbles. These include comments about immigration, transgender rights, Brexit - and false claims that the shadow international development secretary called to "abolish the Army".

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TikTok: AI fakes, abuse and misinformation pushed to young voters

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A BBC project investigates the election content promoted by social media by tracking dozens of phones.

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4/6/24 361 million stolen e-mail accounts

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4/6/24 361 million stolen e-mail accounts

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Welcome to BleepingComputer, a free community where people like yourself come together to discuss and learn how to use their computers. Using the site is easy and fun. As a guest, you can browse and view the various discussions in the forums, but can not create a new topic or reply to an existing one unless you are logged in. Other benefits of registering an account are subscribing to topics and forums, creating a blog, and having no ads shown anywhere on the site.

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4/6/24 What is tech abuse and how to protect yourself?

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4/6/24 What is tech abuse and how to protect yourself?

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Key Points

If you or someone you know is impacted by family and domestic violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000.

The Men's Referral Service provides advice for men on domestic violence and can be contacted on 1300 766 491.

Those seeking support can contact Lifeline crisis support on 13 11 14

Tune in for on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays at noon. Follow us on or sign up to our podcasts .

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Domestic violence: What is tech abuse and how to protect yourself?

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According to Wesnet, 99.3% of frontline domestic violence practitioners have clients experiencing tech abuse. SBS Russian spoke to Wesnet's Karen Bentley about tech abuse and the way victims can protect themselves.

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Tech that comes with weak passwords such as "admin" or "12345" will be banned in the UK under new laws dictating that all smart devices must meet minimum security standards.

Measures to protect consumers from hacking and cyber-attacks come into effect on Monday, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology said.

It means manufacturers of phones, TVs and smart doorbells, among others, are now legally required to protect internet-connected devices against access by cybercriminals, with users prompted to change any common passwords.

Brands have to publish contact details so that bugs and issues can be reported, and must be transparent about timings of security updates.

It is hoped the new measures will help give customers confidence in buying and using products at a time when consumers and businesses have come under attack from hackers at a soaring rate.

The consumer champion Which? said it had been instrumental in pushing for the new measures and it welcomed the changes.

Rocio Concha, a director of policy and advocacy at Which?, said: "The OPSS [Office for Product Safety and Standards] must provide industry with clear guidance and be prepared to take strong enforcement action against manufacturers if they flout the law, but we also expect smart device brands to do right by their customers from day one and ensure shoppers can easily find information on how long their devices will be supported and make informed purchases."

The science and technology minister, Jonathan Berry, said: "As everyday life becomes increasingly dependent on connected devices, the threats generated by the internet multiply and become even greater.

"From today, consumers will have greater peace of mind that their smart devices are protected from cybercriminals, as we introduce world-first laws that will make sure their personal privacy, data and finances are safe. We are committed to making the UK the safest place in the world to be online and these new regulations mark a significant leap towards a more secure digital world."

The laws are taking effect as part of the product security and telecommunications infrastructure (PSTI) regime, which aims to strengthen the UK's resilience against cybercrime.

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No more 12345: devices with weak passwords to be banned in UK

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Makers of phones, TVs and smart doorbells legally required to protect devices against access by cybercriminals

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Show caption
Deep discounts on designer brands lured customers to part with cash, but no goods were sent. Composite: Guardian Design/Getty Images

More than 800,000 people in Europe and the US appear to have been duped into sharing card details and other sensitive personal data with a vast network of fake online designer shops apparently operated from China.

An international investigation by the Guardian, Die Zeit and Le Mondegives a rare inside look at the mechanics of what the UK's Chartered Trading Standards Institute has described as one of the largest scams of its kind, with 76,000 fake websites created.

A trove of data examined by reporters and IT experts indicates the operation is highly organised, technically savvy - and ongoing.

Operating on an industrial scale, programmers have created tens of thousands of fake web shops offering discounted goods from Dior, Nike, Lacoste, Hugo Boss, Versace and Prada, as well as many other premium brands.

Published in multiple languages from English to German, French, Spanish, Swedish and Italian, the websites appear to have been set up to lure shoppers into parting with money and sensitive personal data.

However, the sites have no connection to the brands they claim to sell and in most cases consumers who spoke about their experience said they received no items.
Scams
The first fake shops in the network appear to have been created in 2015. More than 1m "orders" have been processed in the past three years alone, according to analysis of the data.Not all payments were successfully processed, but analysis suggests the group may have attempted to take as much as €50m (£43m) over the period.Many shops have been abandoned, but a third of them - more than 22,500 - are still live.

So far, an estimated 800,000 people, almost all of them in Europe and the US, have shared email addresses, with 476,000 of them having shared debit and credit card details, including their three-digit security number. All of them also handed over their names, phone numbers, email and postal addresses to the network.

Katherine Hart, a lead officer at the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, described the operation as "one of the largest online fake shops scams that I have seen". She added: "Often these people are part of serious and organised crime groups so they are harvesting data and may use it against people later, making consumers more susceptible to phishing attempts."

"Data is the new currency," said Jake Moore, a global cybersecurity adviser at the software company ESET. He warned such personal data troves could also be valuable to foreign intelligence agencies for surveillance purposes. "The bigger picture is that one must assume the Chinese government may have potential access to the data," he added.

The existence of the fake shops network was revealed by Security Research Labs (SR Labs), a German cybersecurity consultancy, which obtained several gigabytes of data and shared it with Die Zeit.

Exclusive: Vast web of fake shops touting designer brands took money and personal details from 800,000 people in Europe and US, data suggests

A core group of developersappears to have built a system tosemi-automatically create and launch websites, allowing rapid deployment.This core appears to have operated some shops themselves, but to have allowed other groups to use the system. The logs suggest at least 210 users have accessed the system since 2015.

SR Labs consultant Matthias Marx described the model as "franchise-like". He said: "The core team is responsible for developing software, deploying backends, and supporting the operation of the network. The franchisees manage the day-to-day operations of fraudulent shops."

It was a few weeks before Christmas. Melanie Brown, 54, from Shropshire in England, was looking for a new handbag. She put the image of a leather item from one of her favourite German designers, Rundholz, into Google. Immediately a website appeared offering the bag at 50% off the usual £200 retail price. She added it to her cart.

"It reeled me in," she said. After selecting the bag she spotted other designer clothes from a high-end brand she loves called Magnolia Pearl. She found dresses, tops and jeans, racking up a £1,200 bill on 15 items. "I was getting a lot for the money, so I thought it was worth it," she said.

But Brown was being ripped off. Over nearly a decade, a network operating from Fujian province in China used what appears to be a single software platform to create tens of thousands of fake online shops.

There are the big global brands such as Paul Smith, haute couture houses such as Christian Dior, but also more niche, much sought-after names such as Rixo and Stella McCartney, and high street retailers like Clarks shoes. Not just clothes - there are fake stores selling quality toys, such as Playmobil, and at least one selling lighting.

About 49 people who say they were scammed have been interviewed for this investigation. The Guardian spoke to 19 from the UK and the US. Their evidence suggests these websites were not set up to trade in counterfeit goods. Most people received nothing in the mail. A few did, but the items were not the ones ordered. A German shopper paid for a blazer and received cheap sunglasses. A British customer received a bogus Cartier ring instead of a shirt and another was sent a non-branded blue jumper instead of the Paul Smith one they had paid for.

Strangely, many who tried to shop never lost money. Either their bank blocked the payment, or the fake shop itself did not process it.

However, all of those interviewed have one thing in common: they handed over their private data.

Simon Miller, the director of policy and communications for Stop Scams UK, said: "Data can be more valuable than sales. If you are hoovering up someone's card details that data is invaluable then for a bank account takeover."

SR Labs, which works with corporations to protect their systems from cyber-attacks, believes the scam is operating on two levels. First, credit card harvesting, in which fake payment gateways collect credit card data but do not take any money. Second, fake selling, where the criminals do take money. There is evidence the network took payments processed via PayPal, Stripe and other payment services, and in some cases directly from debit or credit cards.

The network used expired domains to host its fake shops, which experts say can help to avoid detection by websites or brand owners. It appears to have a database of 2.7m of these orphaned domains and runs tests to check which ones are best to use.

In Germany, the owner of a glass bead factory said she had received angry calls almost every day from shoppers asking where their Lacoste clothes were. She found out that an old website of hers, perlenzwoelfe.de, had been used for the scam. She was findable as content she had previously placed on at that address was visible in web archives. She reported the fraud to the police. "The officials just said there was nothing they could do about it."

It was the same story for Michael Rouah who runs Artoyz, an online store and shop in central Paris selling handmade toys. His full catalogue of products was copied. "They changed the name and used another domain ... They stole the images from our website and changed the prices, putting them - of course - much lower."

He was alerted to the fraud by customers. "We generally can't do much about it ... We explored taking action with a lawyer, but it takes time and it costs money," he said.

A fake website claiming to offer Lacoste products. Photograph: web

The network appears to have originated in Fujian province. Many of the IP (internet protocol) addresses can be traced back to China, some to the Fujian cities of Putian and Fuzhou.

Payroll documents found in the data suggest individuals were hired as developers and data harvesters and paid salaries through Chinese banks.

There were also three templates foremployment contracts, where the employer is listed asFuzhou Zhongqing Network Technology Co Ltd.

Officially registered in China, and issued with an official unique identifier number, the company gives its address as Fuzhou, the capital of Fujian. It is not clear what connection it has to the network.

The contracts set out strict working conditions. The employee is given a performance score and can increase their salary with a higher ranking. They are judged on whether they refrain from playing video games, watching movies, or sleeping while at work. If staff are sick or take a holiday, their salary is reduced for days missed unless they work overtime.

The data includes a spreadsheet describing the payment between January and October 2022 of 2,410,000 yuan (almost £266,000) in dividends to at least four shareholders of an unnamed company.

The Fuzhou Zhongqing company is now advertising for developers and data collectors via Chinese recruitment websites. The salary for a data collection specialist is 4,500-7,000 Chinese yuan (about £500 to £700) a month and the business is described as a "foreign trade company that mainly produces sports shoes, fashion clothing, brand bags, and other series".

The Fuzhou Zhongqing company did not respond to a request for comment.

Action Fraud, the UK's reporting centre for cybercrime, said it would seek to have the fake web shops taken down.

Online scams are a growing problem. There were 77,000 cases of purchase fraud - where goods are paid for but never materialise - in the UK in the first six months of 2023, a 43% increase compared with the same period in 2022. In the US consumers lost nearly $8.8bn to fraud in 2022, an increase of more than 30% over the previous year. The second most commonly reported scam is related to online shopping fraud.

According to the TSB fraud spokesperson Matt Hepburn, purchase fraud is "the biggest driver" of online financial crime in the UK. He said technology companies should do more to protect consumers. "Search engines and tech platforms must prevent their users from being exposed to fake sites, and swiftly remove the scam content that is reported to them."

Hester Abrams, the international engagement manager at the industry collaboration Stop Scams UK, said: "Consumers will only be better protected from criminal outfits exploiting digital systems if businesses and governments make scam prevention a genuine priority. Investigations like this show just how much impact we could have against scammers with a better coordinated international effort."
Additional reporting from Helen Davidson and Chi-hui Lin
The fake shops claimed to sell top brands including Hugo Boss, Versace and Clarks. Photograph: web

Michael Rouah says the full catalogue of his Artoyz online store was copied. Photograph: Magali Delporte/The Guardian

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Chinese network behind one of world's 'largest online scams'

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Exclusive: Vast web of fake shops touting designer brands took money and personal details from 800,000 people in Europe and US, data suggests

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TikTok is starting to automatically label AI-generated content that was made on other platforms, the company announced on Thursday. With this change, if a creator posts content on TikTok that was created with a service like OpenAI's DALL·E 3, it will automatically have an "AI-generated" label attached to it to notify viewers that it was created with AI.

The social video platform is doing so by implementing Content Credentials, a technology from the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA), which was co-founded by Microsoft and Adobe. Content Credentials attach specific metadata to content, which TikTok can then use to instantly recognize and label AI-generated content.

As a result, TikTok will start automatically labeling AI-generated content that is uploaded to the platform with Content Credentials attached. The change is rolling out on Thursday and will apply to all users globally in the coming weeks.

While TikTok already labels content that was made with TikTok AI effects, it will now label content that was created on other platforms that have implemented Content Credentials, like OpenAI's DALL·E 3 and Microsoft's Bing Image Creator. While Microsoft, Adobe and OpenAI are already on board with Content Credentials, Google has pledged to support Content Credentials as well.

Although TikTok already requires creators to disclose when they are posting content that has been created or enhanced with AI, the company told TechCrunch that it sees the new change as an additional way of ensuring that AI-generated content is being labeled, while also taking the pressure off of creators.

In the coming months, TikTok will also start attaching Content Credentials to AI-generated content created on the platform using TikTok AI effects. The Content Credentials metadata will include details on where and how the AI-generated content was made or edited and will remain attached to the content when downloaded. Other platforms that adopt Content Credentials will be able to automatically label the content as AI-generated.

So, while TikTok committed to labeling AI content on its own service, it's also seeking to help ensure that AI content that was made in TikTok is also accurately labeled when posted on another platform.

"AI-generated content is an incredible creative outlet, but transparency for viewers is critical," Adam Presser, head of Operations and Trust & Safety at TikTok, said in a press release. "By partnering with peers to label content across platforms, we're making it easy for creators to responsibly explore AI-generated content, while continuing to deter the harmful or misleading AIGC that is prohibited on TikTok."

TikTok is touting that it's the first video-sharing platform to implement Content Credentials. It's worth mentioning that Meta announced back in February that it plans to build on the C2PA's solution for adding provenance to content.

As part of Thursday's announcement, TikTok said that it's committed to combating the use of deceptive AI in elections and that its policies firmly prohibit harmfully misleading AI-generated content - whether it's labeled or not.

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TikTok will automatically label AI-generated content created on platforms like DALL·E 3 | TechCrunch

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TikTok announced that it will start to automatically label AI-generated content that was made on other platforms

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22/4/24 Social Media Influencers and Financial Crime

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22/4/24 Social Media Influencers and Financial Crime

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As recent arrests in Turkey demonstrate, the glamourous lives of social media influencers can be the perfect cover for fraud, money laundering and financial crime.
Over the last decade, social media platforms have evolved into lucrative arenas where some users strive to amass thousands of followers and generate significant revenue streams. The attractiveness of fame and fortune has led to the creation of a generation of new online personalities - the influencers - who showcase their extravagant lifestyles, perfect homes and designer wardrobes. But amid the glitz and glamour of social media, it can be all too easy to overlook the dark side.

In 2023, the global influencer market was worth $21.1 billion, a figure that has tripled since 2019. And as influencers showcase their money-making abilities, they also become attractive assets for criminal groups seeking to exploit the sector for their own benefit. Ostentatious displays of wealth can provide the perfect cover for illicit financial activity, while an influencer's public following can add a veneer of legitimacy.

A recent scandal in Turkey has shone a spotlight on the issue. In November 2023, a high-profile influencer couple, Dilan and Engin Polat - who have a combined social media following of 8.2 million - were arrested alongside 12 others on charges of money laundering, tax evasion, and illegal betting. The couple had long captivated the interest of social media with their extravagant spending, from using 100-dollar bills as hair rollers and professing their love on a Times Square billboard to viewing their newly bought house on a helicopter ride. Amid their rise to social media fame, they also ventured into various businesses, including a chain of beauty salons spanning 36 Turkish provinces, a cosmetics line, and a diamond brand.

Yet, according to reports from the Turkish Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK), the Polats funnelled around 200 million Turkish lira (approximately $7 million) into shell companies that the couple owned, using fake invoices to give the appearance that the funds were generated through trading relationships with companies which had been liquidated. While the ultimate source of the money is unclear, Turkish authorities believe it to be the proceeds of crime, and investigations are ongoing. The laundered funds were then dispersed to various family members who used it to buy luxury real estate and other high-value assets.
Ostentatious displays of wealth can provide the perfect cover for illicit financial activity, while an influencer's public following can add a veneer of legitimacy
While the case continues to unfold, the ramifications of the Polats scandal resonate far and wide. It has prompted a wider investigation by Turkey's Labour and Social Security Ministry into 600 social media influencers suspected of similar illegal activities. While the alleged money laundering techniques may not be new, what sets this case apart is the exploitation of new avenues like social media and the brazen public demonstration of the proceeds of crime.

The concerns around the ease with which social media influencers can be involved in illicit activities does not end with platforms like Instagram or Facebook. Consider Twitch, a leading live streaming hub for gamers, where viewers can support their favourite streamers with Twitch bits (costing $0.01). These bits can be converted into a real currency and cashed out by influencers/streamers once they accumulate $100. However, the ease of creating multiple accounts and the availability of various payment options open the door for potential exploitation of the platform.

In 2021, Turkey detained around 40 suspects, including 31 Twitch influencers, for laundering over $10 million through Twitch. The investigation revealed a sophisticated scheme whereby an organised criminal gang bought Twitch bits with stolen credit cards and sent it to the influencers, who cashed them out, returning the money back to the criminals in exchange for a portion of the commission. Since this, there have been 'CleanTwitch' campaigns calling for the protection of the platform's integrity against money launderers.

These cases in Turkey are not isolated incidents. There have been many cases where social media stars have been implicated in various forms of financial crime. Consider the case of Nigerian influencer Ramon Abbas - also known as 'Hushpuppi', with a following of 2.5 million - who received an 11-year sentence in a US federal court for his involvement in a conspiracy to launder funds derived from various criminal activities including online fraud, bank cyber-heists and business email compromise fraud. Hushpuppi was noted for his extravagant displays of wealth on his Instagram account; however, his social media posts also proved to be one of the sources of his undoing, as they were deployed as evidence to establish the charges against him, as well as being used to confirm personal information, like his date of birth. Heather Morgan, who pleaded guilty in 2023 to conspiracy to launder over $4 billion of stolen bitcoin alongside her husband, had an active social media profile as the rapper ' Razzlekhan', posting highly produced rap videos in which she claimed to be a 'money-maker'. An investigation by BBC Panorama in 2021 also found that social media influencers were promoting frauds to their followers, showing off the cash proceeds of their crimes and providing 'how to' guides on how to commit financial crime.
While influencers have a right to earn money, it is all too easy for them to get involved, wittingly or unwittingly, in criminal activities
Even if an influencer is not directly advertising or promoting criminal activities, their displays of extravagant wealth and glamorous lifestyles attract followers, particularly young people, who interact with their content. These followers' desire to emulate their idols and quickly and easily earn money puts them at risk of being targeted as potential money mules. Recruiters, known as mule herders, may trawl an influencer's posts and approach some of their followers via direct messages to entice them into becoming involved in criminal activity. This is particularly alarming given that CIFAS National Fraud Database figures released in 2023 indicate that 23% of money mule behaviour is undertaken by individuals under 21, with social media platforms being identified as one of the key conduits for recruitment efforts.

There are inherent risks associated with the unchecked pursuit of fame and fortune in the digital age. Influencers have a right to earn money, and there are many legitimate sources of income for them, such as endorsements from major brands. But it is all too easy for them to get involved, wittingly or unwittingly, in criminal activities. Several countries have already begun to grapple with the regulation of influencer marketing, and heightened scrutiny surrounding the products promoted by ' finfluencers ' shows growing awareness of the challenges related to fraud, scams and money laundering. However, the responsibility does not end there. Banks and financial institutions should also make efforts to understand the money laundering risks associated with this new economy and take proactive steps to mitigate them. This may include Enhanced Due Diligence on customers who are 'influencers' and stronger monitoring to detect suspicious transaction patterns related to funds earned through online platforms. Technology firms should also step up in their role to detect and remove suspicious content, while maintaining vigilance against influencers engaged in illicit schemes.

The influence wielded by social media personalities is undeniable, but with great power comes great responsibility - a responsibility to their followers and to ensure that their activities do not stray into criminality.
The views expressed in this Commentary are the author's, and do not represent those of RUSI or any other institution. Have an idea for a Commentary you'd like to write for us? Send a short pitch to commentaries@rusi.org and we'll get back to you if it fits into our research interests. Full guidelines for contributors can be found .

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Luxury on the Surface: Social Media Influencers and Financial Crime | RUSI

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As recent arrests in Turkey demonstrate, the glamourous lives of social media influencers can be the perfect cover for fraud, money laundering and financial crime.

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How safe is it to scan that QR code in the pub? Or in that email?

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Data from Action Fraud, the national fraud and cybercrime reporting service, shows that 22,530 people reported that their online accounts had been hacked in 2023, with victims losing a total of £1.3 million.
Pauline Smith, Head of Action Fraud, yesterday said:
"Anyone with a social media or email account can be a target for fraudsters or cyberattacks. It is important to take action to secure your accounts, as fraud becomes even harder to detect with technology on a global scale."Protect your information by ensuring your email and social media passwords are secure and different from all your other passwords. You can also set up 2-step verification for a layer of extra security. Remember, prevent the potential for fraud and hacking, never share your password or any 2-step verification code with anyone."

In the reports made to Action Fraud, there were various different methods of hacking reported, including:
On-platform chain hacking
This is when a fraudster gains control of an account and begins to impersonate the legitimate owner. The goal is to convince people to reveal authentication codes that are sent to them via text. Many victims of this type of hacking believe it's a friend messaging them, however the shared code was associated with their own account and the impersonator can now use it to access their account. Usually when an account is taken over, fraudsters monetise control of the account via the promotion of various fraudulent schemes, while impersonating the original account owner.
Leaked passwords and phishing
The other predominant method of hacking reported is leaked information used from data breaches, such as leaked passwords, or account details gained via phishing scams. This becomes prevalent as people often use the same password for multiple accounts, so a leaked password from one website can leave many of their online accounts vulnerable to hacking.
What can you do to avoid being a victim?

Use a strong and different password for your email and social media accounts. Your email and social media passwords should be strong and different from all your other passwords. Combining three random words that each mean something to you is a great way to create a password that is easy to remember but hard to crack.

Turn on 2-Step Verification (2SV) for your email and social media accounts. 2-Step Verification (2SV) gives you twice the protection so even if cyber criminals have your password, they can't access your email or social media account. 2SV works by asking for more information to prove your identity. For example, getting a code sent to your phone when you sign in using a new device or change settings such as your password. You won't be asked for this every time you check your email or social media.

If you live in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and have been a victim of fraud or cybercrime, report it at www.actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, victims of fraud and cybercrime should report to Police Scotland on 101.

Suspicious emails should also be sent to SERS at report@phishing.gov.uk.

Find out how to protect yourself from fraud: https://stopthinkfraud.campaign.gov.uk

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Action Fraud issues a new warning to stay safe online after £1.3 million lost from hacked email and social media account scams last year | Action Fraud

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More than 22,500 people had their social media or email accounts hacked last year, new data shows.

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5.3.24 Social media algorithms amplifying misogynistic content

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5.3.24 Social media algorithms amplifying misogynistic content

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Algorithms used by social media platforms are rapidly amplifying extreme misogynistic content, which is spreading from teenagers' screens and into school playgrounds where it has become normalised, according to a new report.

Researchers said they detected a four-fold increase in the level of misogynistic content suggested by TikTok over a five-day period of monitoring, as the algorithm served more extreme videos, often focused on anger and blame directed at women.

While this particular study looked at TikTok, researchers said their findings were likely to apply to other social media platforms and called for a "healthy digital diet" approach to tackling the problem, rather than outright bans on phones or social media which "are likely to be ineffective".

The study, by teams at University College London and the University of Kent, comes at a time of renewed concern about the impact of social media on young people. Research last week found young men from generation Z - many of whom revere social media influencer Andrew Tate - are more likely than baby boomers to believe that feminism has done more harm than good.

Meanwhile, the mother of murdered teenager, Brianna Ghey, called for social media apps to be banned on smartphones for under-16s after hearing evidence about the online activities of her daughter's killers.

The UCL/Kent study, called Safer Scrolling, argues that harmful content is presented as entertainment through the algorithmic processes of social media. Toxic, hateful or misogynistic material is "pushed" to young people, with boys who are suffering from anxiety and poor mental health at increased risk, it said.

"Harmful views and tropes are now becoming normalised among young people," said principal investigator Dr Kaitlyn Regehr (UCL Information Studies). "Online consumption is impacting young people's offline behaviours, as we see these ideologies moving off screens and into schoolyards."

Researchers interviewed young people engaging with and producing radical online content to help create a number of archetypes of teenage boys who might be vulnerable to becoming radicalised. Accounts were set up on TikTok for each archetype, each with specific interests - they might be seeking content on masculinity or loneliness - and researchers then watched more than 1,000 videos that TikTok suggested on its "For You" page over seven days.

The initial suggested content was in line with the stated interests of each archetype, but after five days researchers said the TikTok algorithm was presenting four times as many videos with misogynistic content including objectification, sexual harassment or discrediting women, which increased from 13% of recommended videos to 56%.

"Algorithmic processes on TikTok and other social media sites target people's vulnerabilities - such as loneliness or feelings of loss of control - and gamify harmful content," said Regehr. "As young people microdose on topics like self-harm, or extremism, to them, it feels like entertainment."

Researchers also interviewed young people and school leaders about the impact of social media and found that hateful ideologies and misogynistic tropes have moved off screens and into schools, and have become embedded in mainstream youth cultures.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, which collaborated with the research, said: "UCL's findings show that algorithms - which most of us know little about - have a snowball effect in which they serve up ever-more extreme content in the form of entertainment.

"This is deeply worrying in general but particularly so in respect of the amplification of messages around toxic masculinity and its impact on young people who need to be able to grow up and develop their understanding of the world without being influenced by such appalling material.

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"We call upon TikTok in particular and social media platforms in general to review their algorithms as a matter of urgency and to strengthen safeguards to prevent this type of content, and on the government and Ofcom to consider the implications of this issue under the auspices of the new Online Safety Act."

Andy Burrows, adviser to the Molly Rose Foundation, which was set up in memory of Molly Russell, who killed herself after falling into a vortex of despair on social media, said: "This research reinforces how TikTok's algorithms ruthlessly target and bombard young people with harmful content, and within days can serve teens a near constant barrage of unhealthy and sometimes dangerous videos.

"It couldn't be clearer that the regulator Ofcom needs to take bold and decisive action to tackle high-risk algorithms that prioritise the revenue of social media companies over the safety and wellbeing of teens."

Speaking on a trip to Northern Ireland, prime minister Rishi Sunak said: "As a parent, I am always worried about social media and what my young girls are exposed to. That's why I'm pleased we have passed the Online Safety Act over the last year and that means the regulator now has tough new powers to control what is exposed to children online.

"And if the big social media companies do not comply with that, the regulator is able to levy very significant fines on them and the priority now is making sure that act is up and running."

A TikTok spokesperson said: "Misogyny has long been prohibited on TikTok and we proactively detect 93% of content we remove for breaking our rules on hate. The methodology used in this report does not reflect how real people experience TikTok."

An Ofcom spokesperson said: "Tackling violence against women and girls online is a priority for us. Our research shows that women are less confident about their personal online safety, and are more affected by harmful content like trolling.

"Under the Online Safety Act, online services such as social media and search services will have duties to protect users' safety and their rights - understanding and addressing content which disproportionately affects women and girls online is central to this."

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Social media algorithms 'amplifying misogynistic content'

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Researchers say extreme content being pushed on young people and becoming normalised

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5.3.24 Soap storyline set to highlight how someone can use technology to track their partner

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5.3.24 Soap storyline set to highlight how someone can use technology to track their partner

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Emmerdale will continue to focus on Tom King (James Chase) and Belle Dingle's ( Eden Taylor-Draper) abusive relationship in the coming months, with the storyline set to highlight how someone can use technology to track their partner.

In tonight's (February 22) episode of the ITV soap, Belle and Tom returned from their honeymoon following their wedding last week. Despite the impression they are happier than ever, Belle and Tom's relationship is far from a bed of roses.

Tom has already started displaying signs of coercive control, but there are also indications this may develop into physical abuse as well.

As Belle keeps this a secret from her family, Emmerdale will shine a light on the rise of abuse via technology, which features someone using devices such as trackers and hidden cameras to control and follow their partner.

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Discussing this storyline, producer Laura Shaw said: 'Soaps are in the extraordinary position of being able to highlight what happens behind the public face of an abusive relationship, over a longer period of time. The audience knows these characters so well, sometimes as well as they might know their own friends and family and they care deeply about them.

'As harrowing as it can be to watch this type of storyline play out, it's imperative that we use our platform to shine a light on domestic abuse, and help give a voice to people who have so often been silenced.'

Revealing her reaction to Belle's future, actress Eden Taylor-Draper added:

'When we first heard from the producers the way the Tom and Belle relationship story was going to go, we were fully aware of the responsibility that would bring. But it is an important story to tell. Soaps offer the viewer a glimpse of life behind closed doors and reveal what people present to the world isn't always a truth. The sad reality is that behaviour like this in a relationship is all too prevalent.

'I hope we do this story justice. And if people are in a situation like this they should definitely get help.'

Throughout the researching process, Emmerdale worked with domestic violence charity New Beginnings Peer Support.

'As an after-crisis service we see the longevity of the trauma resulting from domestic abuse and firmly believe preventative measures are key. We therefore, very much welcome Emmerdale covering this storyline to highlight the realities of domestic abuse, red flags within a relationship and the challenges of leaving', CEO Lindsay Olive said.

'Domestic abuse remains a hidden pandemic and the more information in the public domain to increase awareness, the higher the chance of perpetrator behaviour being recognised and victims gaining the support they require.'

Follow Metro Soaps on WhatsApp to get all the latest spoilers first

As Emmerdale puts a spotlight on the complex nature of domestic violence, Tom King will abuse Belle emotionally, physically, through the use of technology, plus isolation from family and friends, love bombing and manipulation.

Emma Pickering, Head of Technology-Facilitated Abuse and Economic Empowerment at Refuge, commented:

'Refuge is pleased to have had the opportunity to work with the writers and producers of Emmerdale, to develop the storyline between Tom and Belle and show viewers the sad realities of domestic abuse.'
If you recognise any of the behaviours displayed by Tom, you may be experiencing domestic abuse. If this is the case, you are not alone. You can access free and confidential support from Refuge's 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247 and digital support via live chat Monday-Friday 3-10pm via www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk. You can also visit the the tech safety website https://refugetechsafety.org/ to learn more about technology-facilitated abuse.
MORE : Emmerdale confirms two major prison twists as three residents receive life-changing news in 25 pictures

MORE : Emmerdale spoilers: Moira's cancer fear for Cain while Aaron gets worrying news and Tom is cruel to Belle

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Emmerdale's Tom to commit physical, emotional and tech abuse against wife Belle

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Emmerdale will shine a light on domestic abuse as Tom King's behaviour towards partner Belle Dingle spirals.

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AI-Generated Fakes: How to spot them, how they're made and how they have been used to mislead

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New offences introduced to criminalise cyberflashing, fake news intended to cause non-trivial harm and other online abuse.

Offences from the Online Safety Act kick in from today, meaning criminals can face up to five years behind bars for their demeaning and dangerous actions.

Love Island stars, children's charities, eight-year-old campaigners, and more collaborated to bring "Zach's Law" and other rules into effect.

Abusers, trolls, and predators online now face a fleet of tough new jailable offences from today (Wednesday 31 January), as offences for 'cyberflashing', sending death threats, and 'epilepsy-trolling' are written into the statute book after the Online Safety Act gained Royal Assent.

These new criminal offences will protect people from a wide range of abuse and harm online, including threatening messages, the non-consensual sharing of intimate images known as 'revenge porn', and sending fake news that aims to cause non-trivial physical or psychological harm.

Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan said:

From today, online abusers and trolls will be prosecuted and put behind bars for their cowardly and menacing acts - ensuring the public are protected and can have better peace of mind when online.

Our pioneering Online Safety Act is already setting a global standard, and pivotal protections like these will keep sick individuals off our streets and unable to endanger Brits online.

Dubbed "Zach's law", a new offence will also mean online trolls that send or show flashing images electronically with the intention of causing harm to people with epilepsy will be held accountable for their actions and face prison.

The campaign for this offence began when Zach - who has epilepsy and was then aged eight - was raising money for the Epilepsy Society and was looking at Twitter responses to his campaigning efforts. It became clear that online trolls had flooded the Epilepsy Society's profile with images and GIFs designed to trigger a seizure for people with epilepsy. While Zach was thankfully unharmed, several others with the condition reported seizures after following the fundraiser online.

Clare Pelham, Chief Executive, Epilepsy Society:

In this country we have a fine tradition of standing up to bullies. And with this new offence, Zach's Law, the government is offering the full protection of the criminal law to people with epilepsy who are deliberately assaulted by flashing images sent by cowardly bullies.

We are the first country in the world to do this and the Epilepsy Society has already been contacted by victims abroad who hope their governments will follow our example.

Following the campaigning of Love Island star Georgia Harrison, bitter ex-partners and other abusers who share, or threaten to share, intimate images on or offline without the consent of those depicted will face jail time under new offences from today.

Those found guilty of the base offence of sharing an intimate image could be in prison for up to 6 months, or 2 years if it is proven the perpetrator also intended to cause distress, alarm or humiliation, or shared the image to obtain sexual gratification.

Cyberflashing on dating apps, AirDrop and other platforms will also result in perpetrators facing up to two years behind bars where it is done to gain sexual gratification, or to cause alarm, distress or humiliation.

Sending death threats or threatening serious harm online will also carry a jail sentence of up to five years under a new 'threatening communications' offence that will completely outlaw appalling threats made online that would be illegal if said in person.

A new false communications offence will bring internet trolls to justice by outlawing the intentional sending of false information that could cause 'non-trivial psychological' or physical harm to users online. This new offence will bolster the government's strong commitment to clamping down on dangerous disinformation and election interference online.

In the wake of sickening content, often targeted at children, that encourages users to self-harm, a new offence will mean the individuals that post content encouraging or assisting serious self-harm could face up to 5 years behind bars.

Richard Collard, Associate Head of Child Safety Online at the NSPCC, said:

Children can be particularly vulnerable to content that encourages or assists self-harm and everything possible should be done to protect them from it while they are online.

We hope this new offence will act as a deterrent to people deliberately spreading this extremely dangerous material. At the same time the focus must remain on tech companies and their duty under the Online Safety Act to design safety into their platforms and stop this content from being suggested and shared in the first place.

While much of the Online Safety Act's protections are intended to hold tech companies and social media platforms to account for the content hosted on their sites, these new offences will apply directly to the individuals sending threatening or menacing messages and bring justice directly to them.

Some of the offences that commence from today will be further bolstered too, when the wide-ranging Criminal Justice Bill completes its passage through Parliament.

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Cyberflashing, epilepsy-trolling and fake news to put online abusers behind bars from today

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New offences have been introduced to criminalise cyberflashing, fake news intended to cause non-trivial harm and other online abuse.

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27.2.24 OUTRAGEOUS CONSPIRACIES: THE DANGEROUS RISE OF ONLINE DIS/MISINFORMATION- A YOUTH PERSPECTIVE.

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27.2.24 OUTRAGEOUS CONSPIRACIES: THE DANGEROUS RISE OF ONLINE DIS/MISINFORMATION- A YOUTH PERSPECTIVE.

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Disinformation throughout social media and the online space is rife receiving billions of views and engagements from across the world. It is such a big issue, that MPs are seeking to make teaching children about online misinformation compulsory at schools across the country. Disinformation and fake news dominates websites, social media platforms and generates around $2.6 billion in advertising revenue solely through misinformation publishing sites.The UK government is making an effort to introduce a new Online Safety bill, that forces tech firms to commit to protecting children from harmful content and activity shifting the responsibility onto social media companies. It is key to explore the issues at hand and work out how dangerous is it for different age groups. From this analysis we can discover what can be done to protect yourself, the young people you may work with and others against online disinformation.
Definitions: Disinformation is false information deliberately spread to deceive people. It is sometimes confused with misinformation, which is false information but is not deliberate Whose fault is it anyway? The rise of social media disinformation
Social media platforms are well known for facilitating dis/misinformation, conspiracy theories and fake news, despite numerous and ongoing policies and teams designed to counter monitor these activities. This is especially the case with platforms such as Tik Tok and Instagram. The hashtag '#conspiracy theories' has 3.4 billion views on Tik Tok. Further, a research report says nearly 20% of videos presented by TikTok's search engine contain misinformation. Equally Instagram has played a large part in the spread of dis/misinformation, conspiracy theories and fake news, especially during the COVID pandemic, with the soaring popularity of the anti-vaxx movement. This is demonstrated by the fact that Meta platforms Facebook and Instagram have been forced to remove around "12m pieces of harmful misinformation about vaccines and Covid-19 " from the start of the pandemic up until March 2021.

Image: The BBC's Marianna Spring's Twitter page, which is full of fascinating investigations and examples of disinformation in the online space. @Mariannaspring
Algorithms
Algorithms play a large part in the spread of dis/misinformation. Algorithms are pieces of computer codes that make decisions or recommendations. This often however results in repeated content on social media that the user has engaged in appearing time and time again and eventually filling up their feed. As a result, if people have engaged in extremist content, conspiracy theories or fake news, this type of content will continue to flood their feed. As one article reports: "The more incendiary the material, the more it keeps users engaged, the more it is boosted by the algorithm". Further, UNICEF theorises "the algorithms that are designed to serve up content that captures user attention and encourage sharing are also likely to promote misleading clickbait, conspiratorial rhetoric, and harmful mis/disinformation ". Consequently, the algorithmic design of social media platforms play huge roles in maintaining high levels of engagement in dis/misinformation riddled content.
Who's watching mainstream news when it's all about the influencers?
The impact of online dis/misinformation on young people can be extremely harmful. Young people tend to be the most active on social media, as well as being the most impressionable and vulnerable. One of the questions we often ask educators and those working with young people in our workshops is " do you know what socials your young people use? How familiar are you with the basic workings? How does this differ from online gaming spaces where some of your young people may be active participants? "These are all crucial questions that adults and those responsible for young people should know the answer too, as these platforms, video games and the types of content are frequently changing. It is important to understand these spaces if educators are to figure out how to combat issues that arise from them for young people. According to recent studies: "Instagram is the most popular news source among young people and is now used as the main news source by 29 percent of teens, with TikTok and YouTube close behind on 28 percent". Given that social media often consists of a wide range of dis/misinformation, with platforms like TikTok proven to be widespread with conspiracy theories that lack evidence, the impact on those young and impressionable minds is likely to be dangerous, to say the least. The formation of 'echo chambers' in which similar opinions or ideas are bounced off each other, which is reinforced by algorithms will likely mean that the presence of dis/misinformation will affect young people to a higher degree than other age groups. Especially given that the critical thinking skills that allow for the balanced analysis of information are often still developing in this age cohort.
The impact of dis/misinformation on adults
The impact of social media dis/misinformation often has a different, but nevertheless worrying impact on adults. There is still a plethora of issues surrounding dis/misinformation spread when it comes to adults on social media. The angle is, however, slightly different.

We all have those "Uncles/Aunts/relatives" unintentionally spreading fake news and rumours through instant messaging sites such as WhatsApp, and this was especially the case during the COVID-19 pandemic. Equally, many of us have known adults or parents/guardians showing us posts containing mis/disinformation on platforms like Instagram and Facebook. For instance, one study reports how: "On average, American Facebook users over 65 shared nearly seven times as many articles from fake news domains as those aged between 18 and 29".

Worryingly, in the UK, 49% of children aged 12-15 find it difficult to identify if social media news is true in the UK. ]The angle with adults as suggested by the data cited here, in fact largely differs from the case of young people being impacted by online dis/misinformation. The situation with adults comes down not to the fact that they are uniquely impressionable and vulnerable in their developing minds, outlook, and experience. It is in fact that they are naïve and lack experience in the use of social media. Unlike in traditional news outlets, where a significant amount of evidence and expertise is required to spread relevant newsworthy information, social media does not have such requirements or filters. Thus, this can lead to adults, operating in a changing media space in which news is generally seen to be trustworthy . As a result, it often is the case that adults trust and spread dis/misinformation posted by ordinary people that is advertised as factual and/or lacks evidence and expertise.

The impact on adults is perhaps more challenging since they may share such dis/misinformation with both other adults as well as young family members who are more vulnerable. Young family members are also perhaps more likely to trust and believe their adult peers or parents. As a result, the dissemination and absorption of information by adults can have a potential negative and highly influential impact on both other adults and young people in families.
Disinformation with more traditional media outlets
Disinformation is not however limited to the bubble of social media platforms as more traditional media outlets have sometimes played a large part in spreading disinformation. For example, a partnership as part of Microsoft's 'Defending Democracy Programme' concluded "Mail Online, one of the world's biggest news websites, one out of five on credibility - the same level as the Kremlin-backed RT news service." Equally, The Sun among other newspapers is widely known for pushing out unreliable, untrustworthy, and exaggerated news and headlines.

Image: A piece of dis/misinformation from the Daily Mail

As we can see by such exaggerated headlines, dis/misinformation has always been a dangerous issue, and it is important that we remind ourselves that it is not restricted to social media. Adults especially spreading exaggerated and misleading articles has always been all too common, social media and the lack of expertise on a poster level just increases the vastness of this practice, just with the addition of a younger audience.
So, who really is to blame?
Where the blame should be placed is a complex matter.
Media companies?
Both social media companies and traditional media outlets have a responsibility to prevent the spread of dis/misinformation and avoid pushing out dis/misinformation. Indeed, there are several policies, employees and teams dedicated to such practices, but this is still limited in its impact given the statistics talked about earlier. It is also crucial that algorithms are shaped and/or monitored in such a way so that they avoid promoting dangerous and misleading content. It is thus largely the responsibility of those who own, shape and control the platforms to prevent the spread of dis/misinformation. Currently, the UK government is trying to make social media companies legally responsible for keeping children and young people safe online as part of the Online Safety bill '.
Young people?
Herrero-Diz and colleagues found that young people cared less about the accuracy of articles than their novelty or uniqueness. They concluded that the students in their study were "moved by the power of attraction of conspicuous, emotional, or outrageous language to camouflage hoaxes, rumours, or manipulations, under the guise of reliable information". In part the culture of young people in sharing such articles for fun rather than using their critical thinking skills and asking adults who they know and trust about such articles can be considered. This view is however limited, as young people are often vulnerable as they lack strong critical thinking skills and are not aware of the negative impact of such dis/misinformation. This is why we at ConnectFutures run workshops to equip young people with key critical thinking skills.
Adults/Parents/Guardians?
Adults/guardians have a part to play in the rise of dis/misinformation. On one hand they are involved in the spread of articles containing such information whether it be through social media, WhatsApp groups or accepting every article at face value. Unlike young people, adults should have developed their own critical thinking skills.

Further, it is the role of adults/guardians to ensure that young people are not engaging with and sharing dangerous or false information online. It is also imperative that this group safeguards the young people that they are responsible for by teaching them the critical thinking skills necessary to discern the difference between different information.

Ultimately, there are multiple people within the chain who hold responsibility for the continued and worrying rise of dis/misinformation online, all must take responsibility and ensure they are doing what they can to control such a dangerous rise. The potential introduction of the online safety bill could potentially be an additional step toward assigning greater responsibility to social media companies for monitoring social media content and its impacts.
Steps to protect yourself and others

Image: Key critical thinking skills

1. Always question information, regardless of where it comes from, use your critical thinking skills. Question where does it come from? What are the intentions of posting such information? Fact-check individual parts of the information from multiple trusted sources and look at the opposing views or competing information to get a fuller picture. Don't just share something because it seems true or because those you know and trust are sharing it, question and research first. If you are a young person, don't be scared to ask an adult as well.

2. as your peers what they think of it, this may give you a fuller picture of different perspectives.

3. When viewing an image that's gone viral, always check the full picture. Is it the whole story? Has the picture been manipulated? Has it been edited (check on tineye.com), when was the clip released and why?

4. Adults/Guardians/Practitioners make sure you aren't just sharing articles or information without fact checking and researching for yourself. Critical thinking skills and the questions mentioned in point 1 are crucial. Ensure that the young people in your life are engaging with and sharing information that is reliable and fact checked.

5. Question young people about the information they are engaging with and any thoughts they have on things they've read online in a curious and respectable manner. Be open with young people and tell them that they can talk to you about anything they like, or any questions they have and that if they feel unsure about something, they can ask. Equally, it is important to teach young people the key critical thinking skills of questioning sources and information. But make sure you learn the important steps first, there's no point putting others oxygen masks on if you haven't got yours on first.

How can ConnectFutures help?
We at ConnectFutures provide expert facilitators to deliver workshops in a variety of forms and to a diversity of audiences across the UK. These workshops are with the aim of increasing knowledge, resilience and confidence in preventing extremism and serious violence, challenging hate, and promoting equality and justice. Specifically in relation to the issues discussed here, we deliver sessions on the following: fake news, conspiracy theories and truth. Safeguarding Against Online Extremism (SAVE). Incels, misogyny and the manosphere. Rise of far right, mixed ideology and hateful extremism.

I have also written an article entitled: 'Incels, chads, misogyny and problematic terrorism overlaps: A young person's perspective'.

For more information on the workshops delivered by ConnectFutures, please check out the link here

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Outrageous conspiracies: The dangerous rise of online dis/misinformation- a youth perspective.

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Disinformation throughout social media and the online space is rife receiving billions of views and engagements from across the world. It is such a big issue, that MPs are seeking to make teaching children about online misinformation compulsory at schools across the country.

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Nobody is immune from fraud. The criminals behind it target people online and in their homes, often emotionally manipulating their victims before they steal money or personal data.

But there is something we can do. By staying vigilant and always taking a moment to stop, think and check whenever we're approached, we can help to protect ourselves and each other from fraud.

Did you know?

In just one year, 1 in 17 adultswere victims of fraud

Source: Crime Survey for England and Wales, year ending September 2023

What's the risk of fraud happening to you? Find out why anybody can become a victim of fraud and why everyone should take steps to protect themselves.

Find out how to spot the tactics and techniques commonly used by fraudsters, to help reduce your risk of becoming a victim.

Find out what you can do today to help protect yourself, your loved ones and your business from fraud.

Learn how to access practical advice and support and what steps you can take if you've lost money or data.

Reporting fraud

If you've been a victim of fraud, report it now.

Campaign partners

The National Campaign Against Fraud is brought to you by UK government in partnership with City of London Police, National Cyber Security Centre and National Crime Agency.

Visit the Action Fraud website.

Visit the NCSC website.

Visit the NCA website.

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Nobody is immune from fraud. Learn how to protect yourself from fraudsters by staying vigilant and taking a moment to stop and think. Are you at risk?

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Meta, cyber-attacks and more - INEQE by Safeguarding Soundbites

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AI, Vaping and Esports - INEQE by Safeguarding Soundbites

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Most MPs across Westminster fear the use of deepfakes and AI-generated content will undermine the integrity of the next general election, amid demands for an urgent overhaul of their regulation ahead of polling day.

Ministers are already concerned about the effect the technology has had on elections overseas, with a survey of MPs revealing that a majority believe it poses a threat to the integrity of the coming election. Some 70% fear AI will increase the spread of misinformation and disinformation.

With 2024 billed as a huge year for democracy with elections taking place around the world, senior figures from all major parties are pushing for the issue to be prioritised before the election campaign takes off in earnest. All parties are being urged to promise not to amplify material they cannot verify.

Both London Mayor Sadiq Khan and Labour leader Keir Starmer have already been targeted by deepfake attempts in recent months, with invented audio clips designed to damage them. Meanwhile, security minister Tom Tugendhat has warned that deepfakes have already been attempted in the run-up to the Slovakian elections. Last week, chancellor Jeremy Hunt warned that the development of AI had to be in line with "liberal democratic values".

A survey of MPs seen by the Observer shows that 57% of those asked said AI could negatively interfere with electoral integrity in 2024. Two-thirds (65%) said political parties and politicians should be transparent about how they are using AI tools in campaigns, according to a YouGov poll commissioned by the communications consultancy Cavendish.

The vast majority of general voters - some 78% - backed a requirement for political parties to disclose their use of AI.

The findings are included in a forthcoming report by the Demos thinktank, which calls for all parties to sign up to new standards on the use of AI and to publish their internal guidelines for using it. Researchers also call on parties to commit to not amplifying suspect material.

Robert Buckland, the former Tory justice secretary, said action was needed ahead of "the biggest year of elections in world history". He added: "We have to make sure that the clear and present danger to democracy presented by deepfakes and AI generated misinformation is both headed off and mitigated by direct action."

Khan told the Observer that the far right had sought to use the material against him to "raise tensions, sow hatred and turn communities against each other". He urged ministers to heed a call from the Electoral Commission to update laws on disinformation. "This trend is only likely to get worse in the weeks and months to come in the lead-up to the London mayoral and general elections later this year," he said.

"The danger this new and unregulated technology poses to our politics and democratic freedoms, as well as wider society, can't be overstated.

"I also urge the tech industry, the police and the wider criminal justice system to work together and provide researchers with the data they need to identify and examine the changing risks and challenges of this harmful content."

Peter Kyle, the shadow science and technology minister, said the technology could have "potentially devastating consequences and can further erode trust in institutions". He added: "A Labour government would urgently introduce binding regulation of the small group of companies developing the most powerful AI models that could, if left unchecked, spread misinformation, undermine elections and help terrorists build weapons."

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Polly Curtis, chief executive at Demos, urged all parties "to come together to agree on a way forward to protect the democratic systems they hold so dear and establish responsible norms about how generative AI is used".

In addition to the potential of fake content, some Tories have also been warning of the dangers of misrepresenting real material after an encounter with Rishi Sunak and a former NHS worker last week. Sky News tweeted a video showing the voter berating Sunak about the state of the NHS. Sunak is then shown laughing and walking off. After dozens of Labour MPs and commentators criticised Sunak, Sky News broadcast full footage of the encounter which showed the pair had walked off together before ending their encounter by shaking hands. A Downing Street source said Sunak was laughing at a comment from someone in the crowd, rather than the woman.

A Department for Science Innovation and Technology spokesperson said: "We are working to ensure we are ready to respond to threats to our democratic processes, including through our Defending Democracy Taskforce.

"The Online Safety Act will soon make social media platforms legally responsible for removing illegal mis- and disinformation and enforcing their terms of service. We have also introduced the Digital Imprints Regime, which requires certain political campaigning digital material, including AI-generated material, to have a digital imprint that makes clear to voters who is promoting the content."

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Call for action on deepfakes as fears grow among MPs over election threat

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Survey reveals 70% of MPs are concerned AI-generated content will increase the spread of disinformation ahead of polling day

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The Rise of Keyboard Based iPhone Hacking

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The Rise of Keyboard Based iPhone Hacking

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A troubling new hacking method has emerged-cybercriminals have found a way to bypass Apple's normal security checks and use third-party custom keyboards to spy on people's iPhone activity.

Once one of these malicious keyboards has been installed on an iPhone, hackers can use it to gain unauthorized access to every keystroke on a victim's device. This allows them to record private messages, browsing history, and even passwords.

iPhones are usually considered one of the most secure devices. This is thanks to their closed operating system and regular security updates. However, security patches alone may not be enough to combat this new threat.

These keyboards pose a significant threat, especially in domestic tech abuse situations where an abuser uses technology to harass, stalk, or intimidate a partner.

After receiving multiple reports of cyberstalking incidents, where stalkers appeared to know everything that their target had typed into their iPhone, Certo's threat lab launched an investigation. This revealed the presence of these nefarious custom keyboards on the affected devices.

We've created guidance explaining how this exploitation works, how iPhone users can shield themselves, and what steps Apple should take to address this issue.

What Is This New Threat?

Surveillance on an iPhone presents notable challenges. Typically, a hacker would need to either jailbreak a target's iPhone or gain access to their iCloud account.

However, this new technique is significant as it does not rely on any of these usual prerequisites. It is compatible with all iPhone models, leverages an existing feature within the iOS system, and doesn't require any specialized technical skills.

It takes the form of a custom keyboard, which are commonly used on iOS to improve grammar, perform translations or add new emojis. However, when set up in a specific manner, these custom keyboards can function covertly as keyloggers. This allows them to discreetly capture and transmit all keystrokes made by the user, providing hackers or snoopers with detailed access to the typed information.

Some off-the-shelf spyware developers have exploited this, offering keylogger services through these keyboards for as low as $30.

This is particularly concerning for those at risk of domestic tech abuse, as it only requires a few unsupervised minutes with the device to set up and it's difficult to spot unless you know what to look for. We're starting to see reports from our users in these situations, highlighting the need for awareness and vigilance.

How Does It Work?

We don't want to provide a how-to guide for stalkers, so we won't go into the exact setup steps or name any spyware products. But it's important to note that the process is worryingly straightforward, here's how it works...

The process begins with installing a small app containing an embedded custom keyboard on the target's device. The spyware developers we investigated often distribute these apps through TestFlight -a platform for testing new iOS apps before they are released on the App Store.

By deploying via TestFlight, spyware developers are likely attempting to avoid detection by Apple. This is because TestFlight apps are not subjected to the same strict review process as apps from the main App Store.

However, in theory, a malicious custom keyboard could be distributed via any app. This means a seemingly harmless app may serve as a carrier to introduce a keylogger.

Once the app is on the iPhone, the stalker then installs the custom keyboard via the Settings app and configures it to have 'Full Access' to the device. Next, the perpetrator switches the iPhone's default keyboard with this custom version. Visually, these keyboards are almost identical.

Fig 1. Default iOS keyboard (left) vs. custom keyboard with keylogging capability (right).

The malicious keyboard then records everything that the victim types on their iPhone and sends it to an online portal which can be accessed by the stalker from anywhere in the world.

Captured information can include things like: private messages, passwords, two-factor authentication codes, notes and essentially anything typed into any app on an iPhone.

Fig 2. Web portal for viewing captured keystrokes.

How to Tell if You're Affected

Spotting a covert keylogger on your iPhone isn't straightforward, as these custom keyboards often mimic the appearance of standard ones. You can see this in the screenshots above.

The best way to check if you're affected is to review your installed keyboards in your device's Settings app. To do this, go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards.

Fig 3. Checking for custom keyboards on iOS.

You'll usually see two standard keyboards: one in your language-for example, 'English (US)'-and another, named 'Emoji'. Any other keyboard could be suspicious, especially if it has 'Allow Full Access' turned on.

If you find a keyboard you don't recognize, remove it immediately.

To delete unrecognized custom keyboards on your iPhone, follow these steps:

1. Tap Edit

2. Tap the red minus button next to any keyboard you don't recognize

3. Tap Delete

In response to this prevailing threat, we have also added keylogger detection to our free iPhone app, Certo Mobile Security.

What Should Apple Be Doing?

We think that Apple could enhance its security measures to handle these keyboard threats better.

A simple but effective change could be to notify users when a new keyboard with 'Allow Full Access' is installed. Obviously, the notification should not appear immediately as the stalker would likely just clear it, but it could appear randomly within 24 hours of installation. This would be similar to WhatsApp's method of alerting users about new device connections using the Linked Devices feature.

Additionally, the review process for TestFlight apps is not as strict as the main App Store. Apple therefore might consider introducing more stringent checks for these apps, especially those that have an embedded custom keyboard. This would make it significantly harder for TestFlight apps to be misused by hackers and spyware makers.

Wrapping up

This new method of using malicious custom keyboards to compromise iPhone security is a concern, especially for those vulnerable to domestic or tech abuse, where obtaining physical device access to set up the keyboard is much easier.

Our findings highlight the importance of being cautious and regularly checking your iPhone's keyboard settings for anything unusual.

Apple also has a role to play in enhancing device security. Simple steps, like alerting users to keyboards with full access and scrutinizing TestFlight app submissions more closely, could make a significant difference. Staying informed and aware is key in this ever-evolving digital landscape.

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Beware of What You Type: The Rise of Keyboard-Based iPhone Hacking | Certo Software

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Cybercriminals have found a way to bypass Apple's normal security checks and use third-party custom keyboards to spy on people's iPhone activity.

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Controversial spy cameras for sale on Amazon - BBC News

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The hidden devices remain available despite being at the centre of a US case against the firm.

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With research finding that more than one in four (28%) UK adults regularly speak with people they do not know online, today we are pleased to announce the release of a new online film warning adults engaging in sexual conversations with under-16s that this behaviour is illegal and has severe consequences.

Beyond the harm done to the children groomed, these consequences include irreversibly damaging the adult's relationships with loved ones, and a potential prison sentence.

In the spotlight

The new online film, Spotlight, is part of our Stop It Now! campaign, which offers support to anyone worried about their own or someone else's sexual thoughts about or behaviours towards children via its free and confidential helpline. The film aims to shine a light on this confronting subject, giving clear information about the law and consequences associated with online grooming.

Its release coincides with new data that shows more than half of adults (55%) who speak with strangers online are not confident that they know the age of the other person. Furthermore, when asked what they would do if they were to find out that the person they're speaking with is under 16, 1 in 10 (11%) men over the age of 25 stated they wouldn't immediately stop the conversation.

Though not illegal for an adult to have an online conversation with someone under the age of 16, in the UK it is illegal for an adult to engage in sexual communications with someone under 16 - also known as online grooming.

Grooming at an all-time high

In the past two years, the Stop It Now! helpline has seen a 64% increase in the number of people making contact concerned about either their own or a loved one's online grooming behaviours. Similarly, the NSPCC recently warned that online grooming is at an all-time high, with an 82% rise in reported incidences over the past five years.

Many motivations but no excuses

Dr Alexandra Bailey, senior practitioner with The Lucy Faithfull Foundation, registered forensic psychologist and a lecturer at Goldsmiths, University of London, says: "The adults who have sexual conversations with children online come from all walks of life and backgrounds. Their motivations vary. Some are sexually attracted to children, but most are not. Some are actively seeking to exploit the children they target, but most don't think about the impact of what they do.

"Some of the men we work with tell us that their illegal online behaviour was a way of coping with difficult issues in their lives. They would chat to people online, including children, as a way to deal with their own feelings of loneliness, difficulties within their relationships, or as a way to deal with stress and negative feelings. The internet became a way to escape from their problems and find a 'quick fix' to feel better."

"There can be many different reasons why people offend online, but there are no excuses. To prevent harmful and illegal behaviour and protect children, we must recognise these reasons and help people to stop the behaviour and ensure it stays stopped."

When surveyed, 44% of UK adults agreed that it can be difficult to determine what constitutes as an instance of online grooming. Furthermore, more than a third (37%) said they wouldn't know what to do if someone they knew was engaging in inappropriate or sexual conversations with a child that's under 16.

As well as causing harm to children and being faced with a prison sentence, engaging in sexual communications with under 16s can have a serious impact on a perpetrator's friends and family. Kate's husband was arrested for the offence earlier this year.

Kate, who is a mother of two with her husband and has been married to him for over 15 years, said: "Like every marriage, we'd had difficult years, but we'd gotten through them as a team. I loved my husband, and we had a good relationship filled with lots of laughter. But then he was arrested, and I learned what he'd done.

"Nothing can prepare you for the overwhelming emotions that hit when you find out your partner has been convicted for this kind of offence. It was extremely traumatic. I was terrified of leaving the house and had to get medication from my local GP to try and ease my anxiety.

"To make matters worse, I watched my husband's mental health spiral after the arrest. He even tried to commit suicide.

"My husband and I have lost a lot - friends, family. It's been a terrible year. The laughter has gone from our lives. My message to anyone that's concerned about their own or a loved one's online behaviours is to please seek help, before your life changes forever.

Contact Stop It Now!

Child sexual abuse prevention expert and Director of Stop It Now! UK & Ireland, Donald Findlater, said: "Our message to all adults having online conversations with anyone under 16 is to be crystal clear about your boundaries and the law. These are your responsibility. Online sexual conversations with under 16s are illegal - no ifs, no buts, no excuses.

"The Online Safety Act represents a major step forward to proper child safety on the internet and this reinforces our message to those offending online that there is no place to hide.

"So, to anyone needing support to manage their boundaries and change their online behaviour - contact the Stop It Now! helpline for confidential help and advice."

Life changing impact

Wendy Hart, Deputy Director for child sexual abuse at the National Crime Agency, concluded: "Tackling child sexual abuse is a priority for the NCA and UK law enforcement. We see first-hand the life-shattering effect these online interactions can have on victims, as well as the devastation this brings to the family of the perpetrator.

"Stopping online offending taking place in the first place is of course the ideal, and the Lucy Faithfull Foundation carries out an extremely important service in preventing this criminality.

"However, if you do go on to commit abuse, we will work relentlessly to ensure you are arrested and brought to justice. You and only you will be responsible for the life-changing impact your offending has on the victim and your family."

Watch our new campaign film here.

We are also pleased to see more than 150 pieces of coverage for this year's campaign launch including:

The Independent

Daily Mail Online

The Standard

Yahoo! News UK

If you'd like to find out more about our campaigning work to deter online child sexual abuse, please contact comms@stopitnow.org.uk.

If you would like to donate to help us continue our groundbreaking work to prevent child sexual abuse, click here.

Get involved

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Conversations with strangers: launching our new film Spotlight to deter online grooming

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With research finding that more than one in four (28%) UK adults regularly speak with people they do not know online, today we are pleased to announce the release of a new online film warning adults engaging in sexual conversations with under-16s that this behaviour is illegal and has severe consequences.

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The Online Safety Act: what it means for children and professionals | NSPCC Learning

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What does the Online Safety Act mean for children and professionals? Rani Govender, Senior Policy and Public Affairs Officer summarises in this blog article.

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TikTok says it’s removed millions of fake accounts since start of Israel-Hamas war

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TikTok is pushing back on critics who claim the video app is falling short in its content moderation duties amid the Israel-Hamas war.

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Protecting Yourself from Phishing Scams Online - UK Safer Internet Centre

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For cybersecurity month, we're highlighting what to be aware of when it comes to phishing scams and how you can protect yourselves online.

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Member of staff targeted to carry out fraud

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Member of staff targeted to carry out fraud

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The boss of a small business that had £1.6m stolen in a matter of minutes through fraud has strongly criticised the response from the authorities.

An employee at Steve Wright's firm, Kent Brushes, was tricked into giving thieves access to the company account.

Mr Wright said the case had been handled "appallingly" by both his bank and Action Fraud.

It comes as a top law enforcement official calls for longer prison sentences for those convicted of fraud.

Adrian Searle, the director of the National Economic Crime Centre, said while the maximum sentence for fraud is currently 10 years, the average sentence is around two years and even in the most serious cases is still only four years.

"We support longer sentences for the frauds that are causing the highest harm," he told the BBC.

"In particular we're keen that the emotional impact of fraud is taken into consideration."

In the year to March 2023 the Home Office recorded 1.25 million cases of fraud. Of those cases around 4% were investigated with just over 4,000 ending up in court.

'My stomach dropped'

Mr Wright struggles to describe the moment he learned the money had gone from Kent Brushes, which dates from 1777 and supplies hairbrushes to the Royal Family.

"I don't think I can put into words how I felt," he says.

The financial controller of his Hertfordshire-based company was targeted in a sophisticated authorised push payment (APP) scam in early July.

That is when victims are psychologically tricked and manipulated by criminals into transferring the money to the thieves themselves.

In this case, the victim was tricked into thinking the firm's money was at risk before the criminals manipulated him to gain access to the company's bank account.

The fraudsters then proceeded to steal £1.6m, via dozens of fraudulent transactions, in less than 20 minutes.

"My stomach dropped. My initial thought was, 'this must be a mistake'. Surely the bank will be on hand to help us recover the money," Mr Wright told BBC Radio 4's Money Box.

"I felt for my financial controller who had fallen victim... and then very quickly went into... 'how do we go about recovering these funds?'"

He contacted Hertfordshire Police, who told him he needed to report his crime to Action Fraud - the national reporting centre for fraud and cyber-crime run by the City of London Police.

With several dozen employees and a turnover of around £11m, the company is not afforded the same protections as individual consumers, such as the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Contingent Reimbursement Model code.

Most High Street banks are signed up to these, which oblige them to refund innocent victims of this type of fraud.

As such, three and a half months on from when the money was stolen, the business has not been refunded by the bank, there have been no arrests and there is no sign of any further investigation.

"It's been handled appallingly. The response from the bank - they don't care. The response from Action Fraud... well there hasn't been one," says Mr Wright.

"And if that's how we're treated, losing £1.6m, the many other victims in vulnerable positions I can only imagine how they must feel as well.

"It's not right, this is a serious crime."

As to what this means for Kent Brushes, Mr Wright says the business is "robust" but immediately following the theft, it did hit the firm.

"This setback necessitated a revaluation of our near-term strategies, resulting in a slower rollout of new products to maintain a stable cash flow," he says.

But all staff were paid on time following the scam. "Although we have suffered a huge financial setback, we are strong enough to be able to trade out of this position," he says.

'Case closed'

Just one month after the money was stolen Action Fraud sent him a letter, which he describes as it saying "case closed".

After our investigation Action Fraud admitted recording the details of the crime incorrectly, has apologised, and says it has put in place measures to ensure this does not happen again.

Mr Wright's bank, Barclays, said it was "evident" the customer had been the victim of a sophisticated scam and that no bank would ever ask people to transfer money or share sensitive data like one-time passcodes.

"A great deal of fraud awareness and education information has been provided to Kent Brushes to help them protect themselves from scams, including this scam in particular," the bank said.

"This case has been thoroughly investigated at the highest levels and our decision remains unchanged that the business customer will be held liable."

It added that working with law enforcement was essential to stopping scams and catching fraudsters.

Commenting on Mr Wright's case, Adrian Searle from the National Economic Crime Centre said: "What we recognise is that the policing response to fraud is not yet where it needs to be and there are a number of big changes we're making to that response.

"One of those big changes is to Action Fraud itself and colleagues at the City of London Police, who own that system, are doing a big transformation programme to improve Action Fraud."

In response to Mr Searle's calls for longer prison sentences for people convicted of fraud, the Ministry of Justice said: "We sympathise with everyone who is a victim of fraud and perpetrators should face punishments which reflect the severity of their actions.

"Since 2010 the average custodial sentence lengths for fraud offences have more than doubled, keeping offenders off our streets for longer."

How to prevent fraud

The Take Five to Stop Fraud campaign is urging people to:

Stop: Taking a moment to stop and think before parting with your money or information could keep you safe

Challenge: Could it be fake? It is OK to reject, refuse or ignore any requests. Only criminals will try to rush or panic you

Protect: Contact your bank immediately if you think you've fallen for a scam and report it to Action Fraud

From Monday there will be a lot more stories about fraud - and how to protect yourself - right across BBC as part of our Be Scam Safe week. You can find out more at bbc.co.uk/bescamsafe

You can hear more on this story here on BBC Sounds.

Follow Money Box or Dan on Twitter.

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'My business had £1.6m stolen in 20 minutes'

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Kent Brushes, which makes hairbrushes for royalty, says it was tricked into giving thieves access to its account.

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Colin: Hello and welcome to Safeguarding Soundbites. I'm Colin -

Danielle: ...and I'm Danielle. This is the podcast that brings you all this week's safeguarding news and alerts.

Colin: But this week we're doing something a little different...

Danielle: Yes, this week we're going to be talking about the Online Safety Bill because it finally passed this week!

Colin: Finally, indeed, it does feel like we've been talking about this bill for a long time. This bill has been around in one form or another for years. So today, we're going to take a look at what the bill actually is, what it's going to change...

Danielle: And how it's actually going to work.

Colin: Yes, who is enforcing this bill and how.

Danielle: Just before we begin, we'd like to give our listeners a heads up that we will be talking about topics such as self harm and suicide, as they relate to the Online Safety Bill. So, Colin, would you like to start us off?

Colin: I would! Actually, let's start with a very brief history.

Danielle: I always hated history lessons,....

Colin: I promise this is actually interesting! So back in 2019, a paper was published under Theresa's May government called The Online Harms White Paper. Yes, this bill, by the way, has gone through four prime ministers.

Danielle: Wow.

Colin: Yep. But the bill we see today is very different from its original form. The white paper focused very much on online abuse and harassment. As we'll discuss in a minute, today's Online Safety Bill encompasses a whole lot more. But it was this original Online Harms paper that sort of kicked it all off.

Danielle: And there are a few reasons why it has taken so long to pass.

Colin: That's right. We had 2020 and all that brought. We also had that the aforementioned four prime ministers, so changes in government. Plus, it has also had bits added, bits changed and brought its fair share of controversy. So it's taken a long time to get through all the different stages.

Danielle: So just to finish off history class for us, can you bring our listeners up to speed with where the bill is today?

Colin: So on Tuesday past - which is Tuesday the 19th of September if you're not listening to this the week it goes out - the bill went through its last pass in the House of Lords. Now it will go to royal assent. In other words, it's finished going through parliament - all of the amendments and changes have been completed. Now it goes off to the King to be signed in law. Now unfortunately, there's no set timeline for how long that process takes. But once it's done, it's announced in parliament.

Danielle: But it is passed and is going to become the law. So the Online Safety Bill makes online platforms and companies with users in the UK, from Meta to Wikipedia to that teeny tiny kick-start social media platform with 30 users - all of them - responsible for their user's safety. It's a set of laws, rather than one big one.

Colin: And it's important to note that it is for protecting children and adults but some of the ways it aims to protect children is by making social media platforms remove illegal content quickly or prevent it from appearing in the first place, including content that promotes self-harm. Social media platforms will also need to enforce age limits and measures to age-check. And they will be required to publish risk assessments and provide parents and children with really clear ways they can report problems online.

Danielle: Now, the additions around self-harm content are particularly important because am I right in thinking they are new?

Colin: You are. For the first time, making online content that promotes self-harm will be illegal and therefore platforms must remove it. But they will also be responsible for protecting children from what's termed 'legal but harmful' content. In other words, the content itself might be legal, like pornographic content, but it can be harmful for a child to view that.

Danielle: Yes, and we agree that makes a lot of sense. But also, content showing or encouraging violence or that provides instructions for suicide or encourages eating disorders. And the self-harm content isn't the only new element - cyber flashing and sharing deepfake pornography will also now be illegal too.

Colin: So, so far, this all seems very logical from a safeguarding point of view. But of course, there are still some concerns about how the bill will impact freedom of speech. They're worried that it will allow big social media platforms to decide what users can and can't say on their sites.

Danielle: And if you remember some of our previous episodes of Safeguarding Soundbites, some platforms, like WhatsApp have previously said they will consider leaving the UK if the bill comes into force because they believe the laws compromise their users' ability to communicate safely.

Colin: And they're referring to WhatsApp's use of end-to-end encryption that stops anyone else from being able to access messages apart from the sender and the recipient. The bill means Ofcom could force the release of private messages. But there's also question marks over how the bill is going to be enforced.

Danielle: Yes, that's right. So the bill is going to be regulated by Ofcom. They're the government-approved regulators of TV and radio. People might have heard of them in the context of people complaining about a TV programme or an advert.

Colin: So, as these are laws, there's obviously therefore consequences for companies that break them. It's going to be Ofcom that's mainly in charge of this. They'll be setting up standards for companies to abide by.

Danielle: Yes, and these laws could be fines of up to 10% of the company's income, anywhere up to 18 million pounds, and even imprisonment for executives whose company doesn't comply.

Colin: High stakes. But I suppose the question remains about how Ofcom will be actually doing this. From what we know, once it's law, Ofcom are going to start working on the first set of standards which will cover tackling illegal online harms, including child sexual exploitation, fraud and terrorism. Then once those are published, the next standards will be on child safety duties and pornography and then transparency and user empowerment. These standards are the codes of conduct for tech companies.

Danielle: So, there's still work to be done. Yes, and all of these different sets of standards are being created under consultation. So, for example, the standards referring to pornography will allow for online pornography services and other interested stakeholders to read and respond to the draft version. And then all of this will be sent to the government too.

Colin: It's a phased approach. Though Ofcom has said that the release of the first set of guidelines will be pretty quick after the bill becomes law we'll be sure to update our listeners when that happens!

Danielle: Of course! So to sort of summarise the different attitudes towards the bill: on the one hand, we have people concerned about censorship -how it's going to impact on the freedom of the internet, of speech, of expression. And also people are concerned about tech companies like WhatsApp no longer being available in the UK. And on the other hand, many charities and campaigners are happy with the bill. And actually, some think it doesn't go far enough to safeguard children.

Colin: Yes. So if our listeners know the tragic story of Molly Russell, the 14-year-old who took her own life after viewing suicide content online, her father Ian Russell has spoken out this week saying that it's not perfect but it's an important step.

Danielle: I don't think either of us could sum it up better than that.

Colin: No, and I think that's a really good sentiment to end on. Thank you all for listening, I hope we helped you get a little bit of a better understanding of the Online Safety Bill. Remember, you can follow us on social media by searching for Ineqe Safeguarding Group. And you can join our safeguarding hub on our website ineqe.com.

Danielle: Thank you for listening and...

Both: Stay safe.

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Read the script below Colin: Hello and welcome to Safeguarding Soundbites. I'm Colin - Danielle: ...and I'm Danielle. This is the podcast that brings you all this week's safeguarding news and alerts. Colin: But this week we're doing something a little different...

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The Online Safety Bill has been signed off by the Houses of Parliament and will become law soon

the bill will make the UK the safest place in the world to be online by placing new duties on social media companies - honouring our manifesto commitment

the bolstered bill has been strengthened through debate, with firmer protections for children, more control for adults and clarity for social platforms

The Online Safety Bill has today (Tuesday 19 September) passed its final Parliamentary debate and is now ready to become law.

This major milestone means the government is within touching distance of delivering the most powerful child protection laws in a generation, while ensuring adults are better empowered to take control of their online lives, while protecting our mental health.

The bill takes a zero-tolerance approach to protecting children and makes sure social media platforms are held responsible for the content they host. If they do not act rapidly to prevent and remove illegal content and stop children seeing material that is harmful to them, such as bullying, they will face significant fines that could reach billions of pounds. In some cases, their bosses may even face prison.

The bill has undergone considerable parliamentary scrutiny in both the Houses and has come out with stronger protections for all.

Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan said:

The Online Safety Bill is a game-changing piece of legislation. Today, this government is taking an enormous step forward in our mission to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online.

I am immensely proud of what we have achieved with this bill. Our common-sense approach will deliver a better future for British people, by making sure that what is illegal offline is illegal online. It puts protecting children first, enabling us to catch keyboard criminals and crack down on the heinous crimes they seek to commit.

I am deeply thankful to the tireless campaigning and efforts of parliamentarians, survivors of abuse and charities who have all worked relentlessly to get this bill to the finish line.

Without this groundbreaking legislation, the safety of children across the country would be at stake and the internet would remain a wild west of content, putting children's lives and mental health at risk. The bill has a zero-tolerance approach to protecting children, meaning social media platforms will be legally responsible for the content they host and keeping children and young people safe online.

Social media platforms will be expected to:

remove illegal content quickly or prevent it from appearing in the first place, including content promoting self-harm

prevent children from accessing harmful and age-inappropriate content

enforce age limits and age-checking measures

ensure the risks and dangers posed to children on the largest social media platforms are more transparent, including by publishing risk assessments

provide parents and children with clear and accessible ways to report problems online when they do arise

NSPCC Chief Executive, Sir Peter Wanless said:

We are absolutely delighted to see the Online Safety Bill being passed through Parliament. It is a momentous day for children and will finally result in the ground-breaking protections they should expect online.

At the NSPCC, we hear from children about the completely unacceptable levels of abuse and harm they face online every day. That's why we have campaigned strongly for change alongside brave survivors, families, young people and parliamentarians to ensure the legislation results in a much safer online world for children.

Children can benefit greatly from life online. Tech companies can now seize the opportunity to embrace safety by design. The NSPCC is ready to help them listen to and understand the online experiences of their young users to help ensure every child feels safe and empowered online.

In addition to its firm protections for children, the bill empowers adults to take control of what they see online. It provides three layers of protection for internet users which will:

1. Make sure illegal content will have to be removed

2. Place a legal responsibility on social media platforms to enforce the promises they make to users when they sign up, through terms and conditions

3. Offer users the option to filter out harmful content, such as bullying, that they do not want to see online

If social media platforms do not comply with these rules, Ofcom could fine them up to £18 million or 10% of their global annual revenue, whichever is biggest - meaning fines handed down to the biggest platforms could reach billions of pounds.

Also added to the bill are new laws to decisively tackle online fraud and violence against women and girls. Through this legislation, it will be easier to convict someone who shares intimate images without consent and new laws will further criminalise the non-consensual sharing of intimate deepfakes.

The change in laws will make it easier to charge abusers who share intimate images and put more offenders behind bars and better protect the public. Those found guilty of this base offence have a maximum penalty of 6 months in custody.

Former Love Island star and campaigner Georgia Harrison said:

Violence against women and girls is so common, with one in three women in the UK having experienced online abuse or harassment.

The Online Safety bill is going to help bring this to an end, by holding social media companies accountable to protect women and girls from online abuse.

Under the bill, the biggest social media platforms will have to stop users being exposed to dangerous fraudulent adverts by blocking and removing scams, or face Ofcom 's huge new fines.

The government has recently strengthened the bill even further, by amending the law to force social media firms to prevent activity that facilitates animal cruelty and torture (such as paying or instructing torture). Even if this activity takes place outside the UK but is seen by users here, companies will be forced to take it down.

Anticipating the bill coming into force, the biggest social media companies have already started to take action. Snapchat has started removing the accounts of underage users and TikTok has implemented stronger age verification.

Ofcom Chief Executive, Dame Melanie Dawes said:

Today is a major milestone in the mission to create a safer life online for children and adults in the UK. Everyone at Ofcom feels privileged to be entrusted with this important role, and we're ready to start implementing these new laws.

Very soon after the bill receives Royal Assent, we'll consult on the first set of standards that we'll expect tech firms to meet in tackling illegal online harms, including child sexual exploitation, fraud and terrorism.

While the bill has been in progress, the government has been working closely with Ofcom to ensure changes will be implemented as quickly as possible when it becomes law.

The regulator will immediately begin work on tackling illegal content and protecting children's safety, with its consultation process launching in the weeks after Royal Assent. It will then take a phased approach to bringing the Online Safety Bill's into force.

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Britain makes internet safer, as Online Safety Bill finished and ready to become law

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Online Safety Bill passes its final Parliamentary debate and is now ready to become law.

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Buying and Selling Online - staying safe

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Buying and Selling Online - staying safe

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The advent of social media, smartphones, and various online platforms has significantly transformed the way we buy and sell personal items. Gone are the days of relying solely on car boot sales and local newspapers; now, we can effortlessly snap a photo of an unwanted item, post it online, and wait for potential buyers to show interest. The convenience of using apps and channels like Facebook Marketplace, eBay, Vinted, Schpock, Gumtree and Depop to sell our belongings cannot be denied.

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Buying and Selling Personal Items: Considerations for Staying Safe Online - UK Safer Internet Centre

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In this article we explore some guidelines for staying safe when buying and selling personal items online.

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Staying Safe When Buying and Selling Personal Items Online

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Staying Safe When Buying and Selling Personal Items Online

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Designed and Developed by Will Earp, South West Grid for Learning Trust Ltd

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Staying Safe When Buying and Selling Personal Items Online

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In this guidance we explore the process of buying and selling personal items online and what needs to be considered for staying safe.

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New Updates to Help Prevent the Spread of Young People’s Intimate Images Online

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New Updates to Help Prevent the Spread of Young People’s Intimate Images Online

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New Updates to Help Prevent the Spread of Young People’s Intimate Images Online | Meta

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Instagram and Facebook are now founding members of Take It Down — a new platform by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

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The Internet is most certainly part of our lives these days. We use the Internet for banking, work, social interaction, dating, shopping and much more. However, scams, hacks, identity theft and many more dangers on the Internet are real and all too common. Most parents are aware of the dangers for young people, but without Internet safety, as adults, you are also at risk every time you use a smartphone or Internet-connected device. Identity theft, getting into trouble for posts made on social network sites, and cyberbullying are just a few potential risks.

However, you can reduce your risk of these threats by following the tips in this short guide.

Think About What You Post

Social media is a great way to connect with friends and family like the kids when you are away. All too often, people post pictures of nights out and extra-curricular activities that, while fun at the time of posting, may have serious repercussions and could come back to haunt you. Plenty of people have lost employment contracts, careers, and even livelihoods over the posting of their activities or controversial opinions.

Posting your fun day out will no doubt get you some "likes" and comments, but when your boss sees it after you have called in sick for that particular day, they will likely have a comment too!
Tips
Before you post or send your comment or photo, consider a person in authority and respect, reading and looking at the photo. If it feels uncomfortable, then don't post it.

Guard Personal Information

Your information is valuable so don't post it on social media platforms! Identity fraud is on the increase and one of the first places a fraudster will look to gather personal information is social media sites. Excited travelers have even been known to display their passport with all kinds of information on it. Obtaining just a small detail can allow a thief to gain more information and you could soon become a target for identity fraud.
Tips
Keep personal information to a minimum. If you want to include your birthday on your profile do so privately so that only users you know can view it. Displaying a full date of birth will make you more vulnerable still.

Don't just accept friend requests from people you have never met and do not know. Fraudsters can easily pertain to be interested in fly fishing or fashion just like you, making it all too tempting to add a like-minded "friend" to your list.

Password Safety

Password safety is paramount for staying safe online. Statistics show that over 50% of Internet users use the same password for all or most of their accounts and sites. It is an easy mistake to make as with so many sites asking for a password, users tend to pick just one that they can remember. However, by doing so, you place yourself in danger of having your personal information becoming insecure.

When creating a new password account, make sure it is at least 12 characters and is unique. Make sure it is complex so include letters, numbers and symbols. A hacker can easily reveal potentially millions of user passwords from a corporate attack. If you use the same password then that password could then be used to access other accounts.

Create a simple document or use a Password Manager on your laptop or PC to store passwords safely. Create a unique password for your personal home computer so that only you can log in just like you would when at work.

The safest online accounts use multi-factor authentication. This system uses various methods to ensure the identity of the user. For example, you might need to enter a code that was sent to your authorized smartphone to log in to your account in conjunction with passwords and security questions.

Boost Your Network Security

Making sure that your connections are secure is also important. The router that you use in your workplace and at home is likely password-protected, which means that all the data is encrypted increasing Internet safety. However, when you sit in a coffee-shop, restaurant, or hotel, plenty of people take advantage of the free Wi-Fi available. Hackers can very easily access information from your device and use the information later to empty bank accounts and more.
Tips
If you have your own Wi-Fi, then use it rather than accessing unsecured networks. You can also use a Virtual Private Network (VPN). This type of software will allow you to connect securely from anywhere.

Phishing Scams

Phishing scams are attempts to obtain personal information. These spam emails will trick the user into revealing personal information by means of quizzes, offers, and competitions. Simply clicking on some of these emails can damage your device with malware.
Tips
If it looks too good to be true, chances are it is and do not click on it. If you do not who the sender is then don't click on it. Never give out personal information and always remember even if you have an email from a bank that you actually use that does not mean the email is genuine. A bank will never ask for passwords in this manner, so don't give them out.

Often, if a bank has been targeted in this way, they will alert their customers in newsletters, emails, or information on the login page of your internet banking. Be sure to keep a lookout for these and alert your bank if you think you have received a phishing email that is purportedly from them.

Use Firewall Protection

Firewalls and anti-virus software protection are the best way to keep your information secure and should be used in conjunction with a secure network. A firewall acts a barrier, which prevents your devices being accessed by unauthorized users. The firewall will allow you to connect all devices to your network such as webcams to make sure they are secure. Often, such devices don't have security measures, allowing hackers to gain entry to your network.
Tips
Check that your device has a firewall included in the security software and if it doesn't then install a separate firewall.

Safe Shopping

Shopping online is big business with an estimated 1.61 billion people using the Internet to make purchases online in 2016. New sites are launched every day often from startup drop-shipping businesses rather than dedicated online and high-street retailers. When you are shopping online inevitably you are going to be giving out your personal information, as well as details including the security information of your credit and debit cards. If the site is not secure then you could leave yourself open to having your information hacked.
Tips
Any website address used for banking or for online shopping should start with "https." If the site starts with "http" then avoid it. There should also be a padlock icon that is located within the URL field.

Use established sites that you have heard of or that have been recommended. If you see any spelling errors then this is an indication that the site could unsecure or a copycat scam. You can also use a safe search tool that will enable you to be aware of sites that are best avoided.

Cyberbullying

It is a myth that cyberbullying only affects children. A recent survey reported that an estimated 40% of American adults say that they have been affected by cyberbullying. Cyberbullying can take many forms and includes being called offensive names, being stalked, physically threatened, and sexually harassed. Severe forms of harassment, often by strangers, causes emotional trauma for those targeted.
Tips
If you have been targeted by a cyberbully then there are steps you can and should take.

First and foremost, do not respond. That is exactly what the bully wants a hurt or angry response, which they will feed upon. If you don't respond then it will become boring after a time.

Second, keep a record of every picture, comment, tweet, text, or email. Cyberbullies may think they are anonymous but when they have been tracked down you will have a trail of their actions on which to build a case.

You can report the abuse to the website it came from to have them removed from the site. If the cyberbully is a colleague then speak to your manager. If the cyberbullying is serious, you need to call in law enforcement officers who take online harassment seriously and will be able to deal with and prosecute the offender.

If the cyberbully just has the one source in which to contact you then it is easy enough to block the bully and that should fix the problem immediately.

Cyberbullies cause upset and stress. Speaking to friends who are trustworthy is a good way to feel better. They can offer support and may advise you to take action that you had not previously considered appropriate.

No one wants to go to the hassle of changing contact information, email addresses and phone numbers. In some cases, however, this could be an option as a last resort.

Mobile Devices

Staying safe online also includes considering the growing use of smartphones. Mobile devices are vulnerable to apps and links that are sent by text message.
Tips
Just like with emails don't click on suspicious texts and don't respond to texts from people you don't know.

When downloading apps, make sure that you go to official app stores and check out the reviews, before you download. As with your other devices, ensure that the security software is enabled to protect your information.

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Cyber Safety Tips for Adults - StaySafe.org

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The Internet is most certainly part of our lives these days. We use the Internet for banking, work, social interaction, dating, shopping and much more. However, scams, hacks, identity theft and many more dangers on the Internet are real and all too common.

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Report inappropriate images or videos posted without your consent

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We recognize that the non-consensual sharing of private nude, sexually explicit, or non-explicit intimate and sexual images and videos (e.g. "revenge porn") is distressing. This form enables you to request that sharing of these images and videos be restricted on Google products, including: Please know that we only restrict sharing of images or videos that meet our requirements.

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If you've experienced or witnessed harm online we can help. Report Harmful Content can help you to report harmful content online by providing up to date information on community standards and direct links to the correct reporting facilities across multiple platforms

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Click here for child friendly advice Get advice on how to report abuse and harassment in sport
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Designed and Developed by South West Grid for Learning (https://swgfl.org.uk/)

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Helping anyone who comes across harmful content online