According to Cointelegraph: The UK's Online Safety Bill, aimed at regulating various internet services, has passed in Parliament and awaits approval from King Charles to become law. The legislation is designed to enhance online protections, especially for children, and potentially applies to virtual environments like the metaverse.
Under the bill, social media platforms will be obligated to promptly remove illegal content or prevent it from appearing in the first place, with a particular focus on harmful content for children. Operators are also required to issue risk assessments for users, outlining how to report online safety issues.
Non-compliant companies could face penalties of £18 million or 10% of their annual global revenue. Critics of the bill argue that the provisions could allow government backdoor access to end-to-end encryption, threatening user privacy. Apple previously stated that an earlier version of the bill posed a severe threat to internet security, potentially leading to surveillance, identity theft, fraud, and data breaches.
Following the passage of the bill, Meredith Whittaker, President of the Signal Foundation, suggested that the encrypted messaging app Signal could withdraw from the UK market, if the company is forced to build a backdoor under the new law. This announcement followed Parliament's failure to specify protections for encrypted services in the final amendments.
The passage of the Online Safety Bill coincided with the House of Lords advancing the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill, aimed at combating crypto-related financial crimes. As of Sept. 1, the UK's Travel Rule was applied to crypto firms serving UK residents, potentially requiring companies to halt certain crypto transfers from jurisdictions not complying with the Travel Rule.
