The government is committed to a safer online world and we urge providers to counter the spread of mis- and disinformation on their services. The government recognises that online misinformation has the potential to cause real-world impacts and undermine public trust in the information environment. However, tackling this issue is extremely complicated. We need to be honest that you cannot eliminate all harmful content online and a balance must be found with freedom of expression – a critical fundamental right. The OSA takes a proportionate approach by focusing on the worst kinds of mis- and disinformation – that which is illegal or harmful to children. This means companies are required to tackle illegal disinformation content on their services and protect children from certain harmful mis- and disinformation. The OSA will also hold Category 1 services to account over the enforcement of their terms of service, including terms related to mis- and disinformation. The OSA requires services to undertake risk assessments for illegal content, which includes illegal mis- and disinformation. These risk assessments include assessing the risks posed by algorithms. Services then need to take effective steps to mitigate identified risks. For example, Ofcom’s codes of practice include measures for certain providers which run tests on their algorithms, according to which they must produce and analyse safety metrics about the risks of serving illegal content. It is also important to note that improved media literacy builds resilience to misinformation, fosters critical thinking and promotes respectful online behaviour. The OSA updated Ofcom’s media literacy duties: requiring Ofcom to raise awareness of the nature and impact of mis- and disinformation, enhance public understanding of how to stay safe online and help the public understand the impact of harmful content and online behaviour. We welcomed Ofcom’s first three-year media literacy strategy, ‘A Positive Vision for Media Literacy’, published in October 2024. The strategy sees teacher training as key to improving media literacy and aims to support ongoing professional development to equip educators with the right knowledge and tools to foster media literacy in schools. The government also notes that most of the major social media platforms already employ fact-checking mechanisms as part of their content moderation strategies within the UK. These systems typically involve partnerships with independent fact-checking organisations and the use of automated tools to identify potentially misleading content. Where content is found to be false, providers will often algorithmically deprioritise it—reducing its visibility in users’ feeds—to limit its spread. While these practices vary across services the government supports efforts that build on these existing approaches, provided they are proportionate, transparent, and designed with regard for the importance of users’ right to lawful free expression