The Online Safety Bill will shortly become law in the UK as soon as it receives Royal Assent. The legislation will introduce a new regulatory regime for online platforms and search engines which target the UK, imposing wide-ranging obligations on in-scope services with serious consequences for non-compliance. Continue reading
The International Forum for Responsible Media Blog
Category: Social Media (Page 4 of 49)
The UK’s long-debated online safety bill (OSB) has been approved by the House of Lords, clearing the way for it to become law. But it has pitted the government, which proposed the bill, against tech companies that provide secure messaging services. Critics say it will allow authorities in the UK to compel service providers to break users’ encryption. Continue reading
Social media platforms have become the “digital town squares” of our time, enabling communication and the exchange of ideas on a global scale. However, the unregulated nature of these platforms has allowed the proliferation of harmful content such as misinformation, disinformation and hate speech. Continue reading
On 15 May 2023 in the case of Sanchez v France, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) confirmed its earlier Chamber judgment of 2 September 2021 (see Inforrm post here). The ECtHR found that the criminal conviction of a politician for failing to promptly delete hate speech, that was posted by others, from his public Facebook account, did not violate Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Continue reading
The much-anticipated Online Safety Bill 2022 is currently making its way through Parliament. At the time of writing, the Bill is currently at the Report Stage in the House of Lords. It is not yet known when the Bill will come into force. Continue reading
On May 17, 2023, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signed legislation banning TikTok in the state. The law imposes fines of US$10,000 per day on any app store that offers the popular Chinese-owned video social media app, and on the app maker itself if it operates in the state. Individual users are not subject to penalties. Continue reading
Assailed from all quarters for being not tough enough, for being too tough, for being fundamentally misconceived, for threatening freedom of expression, for technological illiteracy, for threatening privacy, for excessive Ministerial powers, or occasionally for the sin of not being some other Bill entirely – and yet enjoying almost universal cross-party Parliamentary support – the UK’s Online Safety Bill is now limping its way through the House of Lords. It starts its Committee stage on 19 April 2023. Continue reading
Certain cases capture the public’s attention and generate an extraordinary volume of reportage, scrutiny, comment and speculation. The disappearance of Madeline McCann while on holiday with her family in Portugal is the one of the most striking examples, but more recently the tragic murder of the teenager, Brianna Grey, in a Warrington park, led to the public being asked by Cheshire Constabulary to “avoid speculation online and be wary of sharing misinformation”. Continue reading
The UK prime minister, Rishi Sunak, recently hinted that he may ban the social media application TikTok from devices used by government employees. Continue reading
Gary Lineker isn’t so special. He might be a millionaire celebrity whose tweet criticising the government led to a crisis at the BBC and a national argument. But in being suspended from his job for something he’d posted on social media, he actually experienced something that could happen to almost anyone. Continue reading
Recent Judgments
© 2026 Inforrm's Blog
Theme by Anders Norén — Up ↑