Update: Tech firms’ responses to our call for action to protect children
This report assesses tech firms’ responses to regulatory demands for improved online child safety. Despite new duties, children remain exposed to harmful content via personalised feeds. While some platforms committed to enhanced age assurance and grooming protections, further action is required to enforce minimum age policies effectively.
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OVERVIEW
Overview
In July 2025, duties to protect children from harmful online content were introduced. However, research shows that seven in ten children aged 11-17 recall experiencing harmful content online (3). Tech firms were asked to address four areas: implementing failsafe grooming protections, creating safer feeds, ending product testing on children, and enforcing effective minimum age policies. It is recommended that platforms stop pushing harmful content to children in their feeds and conduct risk assessments for significant updates. Nine in ten children aged 8-12 are using online services with a minimum age requirement of 13+ (5), highlighting the need for effective minimum age policies.
What the services told us
Snap committed to adopting all grooming protection measures, backed by highly effective age assurance. Meta is developing settings to manage connection lists on Instagram and has committed to rolling out new content settings for under-18 Facebook users in the UK. Roblox adopted grooming protections supported by age assurance. TikTok and YouTube have not committed to further changes regarding safer content feeds. Meta, Roblox, Snap, and YouTube committed to notifying Ofcom of emerging risks before new features launch.
Why we wrote to services in March
Children continue to encounter harmful content on popular platforms. Research indicates that 84% of 8-12s said they had used one of the top five reaching online services in a month, despite their minimum age requirement of 13+ (9). Overall exposure remained steady, with 73% of 11-17-year-olds saying they have seen or heard some form of harmful content online in a four-week period (9). Personalised feeds were the main route, as 35% of 11-17-year-olds recalled exposure when they were ‘scrolling on their feed’ (9). Content relating to bullying (62%) and hateful content (51%) remained the most common types of harmful content recalled by children (9). Furthermore, 7,263 ‘Sexual Communication with a Child’ offences were recorded last year, led by Snapchat (40%), WhatsApp (9%), Facebook and Instagram (9%) (10).
Summary of responses
Snap committed to switching off network expansion prompts for child users to prevent contact from adult strangers. Meta outlined plans to use AI tools to detect sexualised conversations and extend sensitive content settings to Facebook. Roblox is introducing new age-based accounts with disabled or safeguarded communication features. YouTube and TikTok restated their existing safeguards without committing to new measures, though TikTok highlighted its regular removal of suspected underage accounts.
Conclusion and next steps
The commitments by Snap, Meta, and Roblox to strengthen grooming protections are welcomed, but must be translated into action. This is crucial given children in the top quartile of Snapchat users aged 8-14 spend an average of 4 hours and 20 minutes per day on the service (14). Services must urgently make content feeds safer, as TikTok and YouTube are the platforms most commonly recalled by children for harmful content exposure (14). Recommender systems will face further scrutiny, and enforcement action will be taken if services fail to comply with child protection duties.
