Late last week, the United Kingdom government introduced a fresh set of regulations under the Online Safety Act to shield children from accessing “harmful and age-inappropriate content”. Various entities, including adult websites, social media platforms, and major search engines, are required to comply by implementing safeguards to block children from viewing pornography or content promoting self-harm or eating disorders. This entails incorporating age verification measures and adjusting algorithm settings to avoid recommending harmful content to minors. While many child safety advocates view this as a positive move, some express concerns regarding potential impacts on civil liberties, privacy, and censorship.
Samantha Cole, a journalist at 404 Media, has been closely monitoring the implementation of comparable online safety regulations in the United States. Cole is also known for hosting the CBC Understood series titled The Pornhub Empire, which delves into the operations of the world’s largest adult website.
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