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A new age of accountability: The Digital Services Act and its implications for Very Large Online Platforms

Digital Services Act

A new age of accountability: The Digital Services Act and its implications for Very Large Online Platforms

On August 25, 2023, the Digital Services Act (DSA) came into effect, forcing very large online platforms (VLOPs) and search engines (VLOSEs) – a platform or search engine with more than 45 million users (10% of the European population) – to comply with the DSA obligations. This means major tech companies such

Global Threat Assessment 2023 - WeProtect Global Alliance

Digital Safeguarding

Global Threat Assessment 2023 - WeProtect Global Alliance

WeProtect Global Alliance has published its latest report, assessing the scale and scope of child sexual exploitation and abuse online. The report finds that child sexual abuse material (CSAM) reports have increased by 87% since 2019, with new threats such as AI-generated imagery increasing the urgent need for more investment

The Online Safety Act is now law

Online Safety Act

The Online Safety Act is now law

The Online Safety Act has received Royal Assent and is now law, bringing a renewed focus on how online services can provide a safer life online for children and adults in the UK. An 18-month deadline for the newly appointed internet regulator, Ofcom, is now in place to create a

Online platforms that fail to tackle child sexual abuse material could lose bank accounts

Digital Safeguarding

Online platforms that fail to tackle child sexual abuse material could lose bank accounts

British banks could lead the way in using their influence over their customers to tackle child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) found online by withdrawing financial services. In a move which mirrors the existing policy of MasterCard towards the adult content industry, it has been proposed that banks around the world

UK Passes Online Safety Act

Online Safety Act

UK Passes Online Safety Act

The Online Safety Act has completed its passage through the UK Parliament and awaits only the King’s assent – a formality – before it becomes law. This will trigger an 18-month deadline for the newly appointed internet regulator, Ofcom, to create a series of codes of conduct which the Secretary of

Removing child sexual exploitation and abuse materials: call to action

Removing child sexual exploitation and abuse materials: call to action

The clue is in the name - the ‘World-Wide Web’ is a truly global entity, so it is both natural and welcome that the United Nations is showing an increased interest in preventing harm and conflict online, just as it has in the real world since 1945. At the end

Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) release 2022 Annual Report

Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) release 2022 Annual Report

The IWF have released their 2022 Annual Report revealing a deep dive into the digital and social emergency happening #BehindTheScreens, in children’s bedrooms. “Invite child abuse pyramid” or ICAP sites incentivise users to share links to criminal content in a “scattergun” approach which spams links to a variety of

The growing problem of online-facilitated child sexual abuse.

Digital Safeguarding

The growing problem of online-facilitated child sexual abuse.

This IICSA investigation focusses on the growing problem of online-facilitated child sexual abuse. The increase in access to and use of the internet has brought undeniable benefits to society. It has also enabled a section of society to misuse the internet to distribute indecent images of children; groom and manipulate

Online grooming crimes have risen by more than 80% in four years

Online grooming crimes have risen by more than 80% in four years

The NSPCC have obtained figures which show online grooming crimes recorded by the police continue to climb and have jumped by more than 80% in four years. Key findings from 41 UK police forces show an 84% rise since 2017/18, taking the total to more than 27,000 offences

Will UK’s online safety bill protect children from adult material?

Online Safety Bill

Will UK’s online safety bill protect children from adult material?

Dan Milmo of The Guardian asks key questions on the online safety bill due to become law this year. The bill imposes a duty of care on tech companies to protect children from harmful content. However, there are calls from campaigners and peers to toughen the legislation’s provisions regarding

'Phones have become a battleground for parenting in the age of social media'

Digital Safeguarding

'Phones have become a battleground for parenting in the age of social media'

Margaret Lynch looks at the question of smartphone use for children and shares her own experiences for The Journal. Keeping your kids offline only prevents them from learning the tools which will be vital for their future. Read the article in full here Opinion: ‘Phones have become a battleground for

A fifth of teenagers watch pornography frequently and some are addicted, UK study finds

A fifth of teenagers watch pornography frequently and some are addicted, UK study finds

Harriet Grant and Dan Milmo of The Guardian report on how a major new survey of British schoolchildren’s attitudes to pornography has found significant numbers of young people aged between 14 and 18 are watching it frequently, with some becoming addicted to sexually explicit content. The study by Dignify,

What Are Kids Doing in the Metaverse?

Digital Safeguarding

What Are Kids Doing in the Metaverse?

New report shares the details families, companies, and lawmakers need to keep kids safe. The metaverse is a hot topic right now. Newspapers are writing about it, tech corporations are investing in it, and children are in it (or will be soon). According to our new report, The Common Sense

Online Child Exploitation and Child Sexual Abuse Materials

Digital Safeguarding

Online Child Exploitation and Child Sexual Abuse Materials

The phenomena of selling, exchanging, and producing child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) is trending upwards at an alarming rate. CSAM commerce is estimated to be a multibillion dollar business. To assist in identifying suspicious financial activity related to CSAM, this infographic summarizes red flags and suspicious behaviors. Online Child Exploitation

I Didn’t Consent: A Global Landscape Report on Image-Based Sexual Abuse

Digital Safeguarding

I Didn’t Consent: A Global Landscape Report on Image-Based Sexual Abuse

‍The Image-Based Sexual Abuse initiative, powered by Panorama Global, published its landmark report. With social media, smart phones, and other technology woven seamlessly into all facets of everyday life, many of us – primarily women and girls, but not solely – must face the fact that threats of sexual and gender-based violence

Common Emoji Drug Codes

Common Emoji Drug Codes

As part of VerifyMy's commitment to making the internet safer for children and society, we've created this handy guide to aid parents, caregivers, and educators in understanding how emojis are used to facilitate drug sales online. For more information visit: https://www.dea.gov/onepill Download here: Emoji Drug Codes

Children’s Commissioner Report

Children’s Commissioner Report

The Children’s Commissioner for England publishes results of nationally representative survey of 1,000 young people aged 16 to 21 and focus groups with teenagers. Read full report here 31st January 2023: Children are being exposed to pornography from as young as nine, which is linked to low self-esteem

UK Online Safety Bill gains teeth

UK Online Safety Bill gains teeth

British ministers reached a compromise with backbenchers from their own party who had been pressing for senior executives in tech companies to be made criminally liable for breaches of the new Online Safety Bill being introduced in the United Kingdom. Similar provisions had been considered when the Bill was first

Visualsoft announce VS Verify, powered by VerifyMyAge

Visualsoft announce VS Verify, powered by VerifyMyAge

We are excited to announce Visualsoft has partnered with VerifyMy to offer their customers age verification services through VerifyMy's age verification solution - VerifyMyAge (VMA). Visualsoft aligns technology, marketing and strategic experience to provide an all-in-one eCommerce solution designed to grow and scale their merchant's businesses. Ed Harries, Director of

ASACP name VerifyMy as one of its valued Featured Sponsors for December 2022

ASACP name VerifyMy as one of its valued Featured Sponsors for December 2022

VerifyMy, the Google for Startups-backed safety-tech provider, has a mission to make the Internet a safer place via their VerifyMyAge and VerifyMyContent safety-tech solutions designed to deliver the best consumer experience without compromising the needs of the business. VerifyMyAge is a global leader in age assurance technology, safeguarding children by

VerifyMy joins the Internet Watch Foundation

VerifyMy joins the Internet Watch Foundation

We are pleased to announce that VerifyMy has joined the Internet Watch Foundation as a new Member, helping to keep the internet free from illegal child sexual abuse content. IWF Members are given access to a range of services that aid organisations in keeping their users, employees and children safe

VerifyMy joins WeProtect Global Alliance

VerifyMy joins WeProtect Global Alliance

We're excited to become a member of WeProtect Global Alliance to help in the fight to make the internet safer for children and society. Working with the Alliance, we will continue to develop our safeguarding solutions designed to solve the compliance and safeguarding problems of today's and tomorrow's online world.

California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act (AB 2273)

Age Appropriate Design Code

California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act (AB 2273)

Status: On Monday 29th August 2022 the California State Senate approved the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act. Both the Senate and the State Assembly did so unanimously so there is clear bi-partisan support. If signed by the Governor, the law comes into force on July 1, 2024. What is it:

VerifyMyContent discussed in UK Parliament

Online Safety Bill

VerifyMyContent discussed in UK Parliament

In a high-profile debate during the passage of the Online Safety Bill, the VerifyMyContent solution was referenced to demonstrate the technical feasibility of requiring adult websites to maintain effective records of identity and consent verification for all those who feature within their content. Following some 50 hours of debate in

VerifyMy facial age estimation approved by German regulator

VerifyMy facial age estimation approved by German regulator

VerifyMy is excited to announce that its facial age estimation technology has been approved by the Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz (KJM), the German regulator for the protection of minors on online media. As a result, the technology can now be used to verify the age of users attempting to access 18+