Age Verification Online
The Inquiry recommends (as originally stated in its The Internet Investigation Report, dated March 2020) that the UK government introduces legislation requiring providers of online services and social media platforms to implement more stringent age verification measures.
- The Online Safety Act 2023 received Royal Assent on 26 October 2023. Section 11-12 require providers of services likely to be accessed by children to use age verification or age estimation measures (Online Safety Act 2023).
How was this evidence gathered?
Response
Accepted in Part
Response
Accepted in PartWe accept the need to protect children from harmful and age-inappropriate content. The Online Safety Bill requires all in-scope companies to assess whether their service is likely to be accessed by children and, if so, deliver safety measures for them.
Progress Timeline
Online Safety Act child safety duties commenced 25 July 2025, including age verification requirements. Ofcom monitoring enforcement. Government completed feasibility study on age assurance tools.
Completed feasibility study on datasets for age assurance tools; monitoring Online Safety Act enforcement by Ofcom. Study findings publication imminent.
Published Evidence
Published assessments of progress from inspectorates, select committees, official progress reports, and other sources. Source type badge indicates whether each assessment is independent or government self-reported.
Professor Alexis Jay told Home Affairs Committee that £187m was spent on IICSA and "to date none of its final recommendations had been implemented." Called for "full implementation" saying "get it done."
View detailed findings
As of December 2024, none of the 20 final report recommendations had been implemented. The previous government's response was described by Prof Jay as "very weak and, at times, apparently disingenuous."