Criminal liability for content harmful to children
openrightsgroup.orgFrom this policy briefing on an Amendment to UK's Online Safety Bill:
"The Amendment inserts a criminal liability into Section 11 of the Bill. ...
There is no clear and precise definition on the face of the Bill of what that content harmful to children is. ...
Without any definition, the tech companies do not know what it is that they are being held liable for. A criminal liability would be set for crimes yet to be defined, based on the actions of others."
This is a terrible policy paper made up of pipe dreams. It is impossible to clearly delineate content "harmful to children." Maybe that can be broadly applied to violence and guns, but that's still a broad definition.
Almost feels like a thought crime law...
You can see the latest version of the Online Safety Bill that may be passed into law by the UK parliament here:
https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/cbill/58-03/0220...
From the bill:
"59 Requirement to report CSEA content to the NCA
(1) A UK provider of a regulated user-to-user service must operate the service using systems and processes which secure (so far as possible) that the provider reports all detected and unreported CSEA content present on the service to the NCA.
(2) A non-UK provider of a regulated user-to-user service must operate the service using systems and processes which secure (so far as possible) that the provider reports all detected and unreported UK-linked CSEA content present on the service to the NCA (and does not report to the NCA CSEA content which is not UK-linked). ...
60 Regulations about reports to the NCA
(1) The Secretary of State must make regulations in connection with the reports that are to be made to the NCA (including by non-UK providers) as required by section 59. ...
62 Offence in relation to CSEA reporting
A person commits an offence if, in purported compliance with a requirement under section 59— (a) the person provides information that is false in a material respect, and (b) at the time the person provides it, the person knows that it is false in a material respect or is reckless as to whether it is false in a material respect.
A person who commits an offence under this section is liable— ... (d) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or a fine (or both)."