Moderating influence

8 April 2019 By Liam Proud Follow @liamwardproud

The government may fine groups like Facebook – and senior managers – who fail to police harmful content. This adds teeth to lame social-media regulation, but also creates a UK-specific standard. As other states beef up local regulations, web groups’ margins will feel the squeeze.

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The British government on April 8 proposed a new statutory duty of care for companies that “allow users to share or discover” material posted by other users online.

Under the new law, social media groups like Facebook, file-hosting sites, discussion forums, messaging services and search engines will be responsible for blocking photos, web links and videos that are judged harmful by an independent regulator. Examples include terrorist propaganda and content endangering child safety.

The regulator, which may be a new body or an existing one like communications watchdog Ofcom, will issue codes of practice setting out what companies must do to fulfil their duty of care. It will have the power to fine them and prosecute individual senior managers.

Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Jeremy Wright told BBC TV that the fines could be as large as those under the European General Data Protection Regulation, or 4 percent of a company’s worldwide annual revenue.

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