UK tightens rules on illegal internet content

The British government said on Tuesday it would introduce rules to make the online advertising industry “fit for the digital age”, including cracking down on scams that impersonate celebrities and social media influencers for illegal profit.

UK real estate regulations on illegal content on the internet figure 1 — Platforms like Google Ads will be required to comply with the law so that systems prevent children from seeing ads for products and services like alcohol or gambling. Photo: Getty Images

The UK government said the new rules target big internet and “ad tech” groups like Google, which act as intermediaries for online advertising, forcing them to take more responsibility for policing content alongside online publishers, apps and websites that display ads.

Paid promotional posts by influencers will also be governed by the rules.

Social media companies, search engines and other websites will have to launch systems to block illegal ads and prevent under-18s from seeing adult ads.

The UK government has warned that rapid growth has led to a rise in harmful advertising. Creative Industries Minister Sir John Whittingdale said that “as online advertising becomes a larger and larger part of the overall advertising industry, the rules governing it have not kept pace and so we intend to strengthen the law to ensure consumers are properly protected”.

Mai Anh (according to FT)

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