Dating apps could be blocked if they fail to tackle cyber flashing under major law change

Social media platforms and dating apps could face being blocked in the UK if they fail to clamp down on cyber flashing under a major tightening of the law.

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall, who moved to the role in the reshuffle earlier this month, will use her Labour conference speech to ramp up measures to tackle online sexual offending.

She will announce that cyber flashing - when someone sends a photo or video of their genitals to another person to scare, upset or humiliate them - will be classified as the most serious type of online offences under the Online Safety Act.

It will mean platforms now have to take steps to proactively remove this material, as well as prevent it from appearing in the first place.

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Companies that fail to comply could be fined up to 10% of their qualifying global revenue and potentially see their services blocked in the UK.

Polling by YouGov has found around a third of girls (32%) aged 12-18 have received unsolicited pictures of male genitals. One in 20 boys (5%) of the same age has also been affected.

In her speech at Labour’s conference in Liverpool, Liz Kendall is expected to say: “Keeping children safe online is non-negotiable.

“That is why my first act as Secretary of State was to force social media companies to find and remove content that promotes suicide and self-harm.

"And today I can announce I will go further. Making cyber flashing a priority offence. So platforms will be required – by law – to detect and remove this material. Because what is illegal offline, must be illegal online.”

Cyber flashing became a criminal offence in England and Wales in January 2024. Perpetrators can face up to two years in prison.

A Statutory Instrument - a form of secondary legislation - is expected to be laid in the Autumn to introduce the latest change to the law focusing on tech firms.

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