United Kingdom: Office of Communications published Guidance on Content Harmful to Children

On 24 April 2025, the Office of Communications (Ofcom) published the Guidance on Content Harmful to Children, providing examples and contextual information for providers of regulated user-to-user and search services to comply with their duties under the Online Safety Act 2023. This guidance outlines the types of content defined in the Act as harmful to children, including pornographic content, suicide content, self-harm content, eating disorder content, abuse and hate content, bullying content, violent content, harmful substances content, and dangerous stunts and challenges content. It sets out criteria for identifying and categorising these types of content. The guidance also highlights the need for providers to conduct suitable and sufficient risk assessments and implement proportionate systems and processes to protect children from exposure to harmful content. It underscores the significance of contextual factors in assessing whether content meets the definitions of harmful content under the Act and advises providers to consider the evolving nature of harmful content and update their assessments accordingly.