Changes to the Online Security Act requested by MPs
By Sammy Edwards Last updated Dec 14, 2021
Changes required. The Joint Committee of MEPs is calling for major changes to the UK draft Online Security Act to address online concerns
The government is under pressure to fundamentally change its draft Online Safety Act, which aims to tighten UK laws for the online world.
A new report from a government-*pointed committee of MPs and colleagues says major changes are needed to address an industry that has become "land of the outlaws," the Guardian reported.
Most of all, UK online safety law provides for a duty of care that obliges tech companies to take initiatives to remove illegal content and report it to the authorities.
Online security bill
It also aims to improve online protection for both adults and children, including preventing children from accessing pornogr*hy.
Another controversial part of the bill concerns end-to-end encryption, which governments and law enforcement agencies have been campaigning against for years.
The bill calls for Ofcom to enforce new rules that have the power to impose multi-million pounds in fines or to discourage companies from operating in the UK
Ofcom, for example, could be able to impose unprecedented fines of up to £ 18 million, or 10 percent of global sales
But the committee's report on the proposed bill showed that changes are needed before that can h*pen.
It should be noted that the government actually set up this bipartisan body to "pre-legislate" its bill.
"As we and our Witnesses have stressed time and again, online security is one of the most complex and fundamental political issues of our time," the report reads. "We hope that even those who disagree with our conclusions will accept that the bill is better if these issues are discussed in the collaborative setting of a joint special committee before it is discussed on the floors of both houses."
"The major online services have become central to many of our lives, but as their power has increased, their public accountability has not increased significantly," the report said. "The harmful user experiences that have arisen across many platforms have been allowed to run unchallenged and unchecked for too long. Now is the time to hold platforms responsible for damage resulting from their decisions about their systems and processes, the operation of their services and their corporate governance structures. "
"Online services can and should be accountable to the regulatory authority and ultimately the public for the effects of the decisions they have made," the draft law states. "Our hope is that this bill enables such meaningful accountability and that more accountability in turn leads to better systems and processes, better operation of services, better corporate governance structures on the major platforms and a better user experience for the well-informed Make decisions about the services you use. "
The bill's investigation was heard by over 50 witnesses in 11 sessions, four round tables held, and over 200 written evidence received.
what changes
The report recommends a wide range of legislative amendments.
These include creating a new cyberflashing offense, punishing technology platforms for hosting fraudulent advertisements, and exempting news organizations from content removal, the Guardian reported.
The joint committee's recommendations will tackle an industry that has become "land of the outlaws," said the committee's Conservative chair, Damian Collins MP.
"A lack of regulation on the Internet has left too many people vulnerable to abuse, fraud, violence and in some cases even the loss of lives," he was quoted as saying by the Guardian.
Other changes requested by the report include:
Creation of a digital ombudsman to handle complaints from individuals against platforms
Introduction of codes of conduct to combat "rabbit hole" algorithms
Requiring technology companies to put in place mechanisms to deal with malicious anonymous accounts
Social media companies must disclose how many underage users are on their platforms.
Game change?
The proposed changes were made by Dr. Rachel O'Connell, Founder and CEO of Age Verification Platform TrustElevate.
"The recommendations of the Joint Committee on Online Safety Act are potentially groundbreaking," noted Dr. O'Connell. "In particular, that platform systems should be regulated, not just content. This shift in focus is of tremendous importance as regulators should scrutinize the design decisions and data-driven operations that platforms make. "
"This includes AI-powered recommendation engines that actively connect children with adults with sexual interest in children, and content about suicide for children and adolescents who are feeling depressed," said Dr. O'Connell.
"These insidious bad practices get to the heart of the dangers posed by platforms – the decisions platforms make when using AI to enable smooth interactions and the active emergence of malicious content to ensure that eyeballs stick to the platforms," so that more advertisements can be seen, "said Dr. O'Connell.
"The Joint Committee's recommendation suggests that these practices be regulated and requires the regulator to have the power to review corporate decision-making and hold them accountable," said Dr. O'Connell. "Monitoring platforms, enforcing policy through audits, and ensuring accountability and transparency are critical."
"Assuming these recommendations are accepted and included in the Online Security Act," concluded Dr. O'Connell. "In this case, combined with age verification, this could represent a significant step forward towards a safer internet for children and adolescents."
Not straight ahead
However, others, like Robin Wilton, director of Internet Trust at the Internet Society, have highlighted the problems of addressing societal problems through law.
"The results of the parliamentary mixed committee show that trying to address societal problems with technology laws is nowhere near as easy as the Home Office makes it *pear," said Wilton. "The conclusions confirm what government experts have been saying for years that there are no easy solutions to these problems, and those put forward will make us all less certain."
"While the government has already put an age verification in place (in the Digital Economy Act 2017), for example, the government still needs to find a way to get this working," Wilton said.
"Regardless of whether the content is illegal or" legal but harmful ", another issue highlighted by the committee, there is no way to monitor content without violating the security and privacy of end-to-end encrypted services "Said Wilton.
"There is a huge g* in reality between the complexities of the issues that Online Safety Act seeks to address and the simplistic *proach," said Wilton. "If the government is genuinely interested in online security, it cannot pursue this 'enact now and correct later' *proach."
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