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The UK Online Safety Act 2023 requires regulated services—not every website or app by default—to assess risks from illegal content, put appropriate safety measures in place, and keep records and review their work. Services that are likely to be accessed by children have an additional assessment and child-protection duties. What a service must do depends on its legal category, features, users, and identified risks.
Which social media services are covered?
“Social media platform” is a useful everyday description, but it is not a complete legal test. The Act regulates qualifying services, including user-to-user services and search services. A social platform’s legal status depends on the statutory definitions and how its service works—not simply its brand name or the fact that people can create accounts.
That distinction matters because duties differ by service category. A provider must establish which parts of the Act apply to its service before deciding what compliance requires. Ofcom’s Online Safety Act explainer and the Online Safety Act 2023 set out the framework.
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| Question | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Is the service within the Act’s scope? | Duties apply to regulated services, not automatically to every site, app, or online account. |
| Is it a user-to-user service or a search service? | The Act and Ofcom materials assign duties according to service category; a social platform commonly has user-to-user functionality. |
| Are children likely to access it? | If they are, additional child-risk assessment and protection duties apply. |
What must regulated services do about illegal content?
In-scope providers must carry out a suitable and sufficient illegal-content risk assessment, take appropriate steps to address the risks, and meet record-keeping and review duties. The assessment must reflect the particular service rather than assume that every platform faces the same risks. Ofcom says providers must consider the relevant elements set out in the Act, including risks associated with 17 kinds of priority illegal content and other illegal content. For user-to-user services, this includes relevant risks that the service could be used to commit or facilitate a priority offence.
The assessment is intended to inform the service’s protections. Ofcom’s illegal-content risk assessment guidance explains the assessment and related duties. Measures should be proportionate and connected to the provider’s service, its risks, and applicable codes; the Act does not prescribe one identical moderation system for every platform.
How does the Act protect children online?
Child-safety duties begin with an assessment of access. In-scope user-to-user and search services must conduct a children’s access assessment to establish whether children are likely to use the service. If children are likely to access it, the provider must carry out a children’s risk assessment, implement protections, and keep records and review its work.
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The assessment should account for the service’s users and characteristics, including risks that children may encounter harmful content. The Act requires proportionate measures relating to service design or operation to mitigate and manage identified risks. It also requires systems intended to prevent children from encountering primary-priority content harmful to children and to protect at-risk age groups from other harmful content. These duties are not a universal ban on every item that could be considered harmful; the statutory categories, service assessment, and applicable requirements determine what protections are needed.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesOfcom’s children’s online-safety guidance describes the access assessment, risk assessment, and protection framework.
What do record-keeping and reviews involve?
Providers must keep records of the required assessments and review their work. Risk assessments need to remain current: a significant change to a service can trigger a further assessment. The relevant trigger and timetable depend on the applicable statutory duties and Ofcom guidance, so providers should consult the requirements for their service category rather than rely on a single rule of thumb.
What is Ofcom’s role?
Ofcom regulates compliance and publishes guidance and codes of practice that explain measures providers can use to meet their duties. Its role is not to act as a post-by-post takedown desk: Ofcom says it does not require companies to remove particular posts, images, videos, or accounts. The obligations attach to regulated service providers and their systems under the statutory framework.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Which Ofcom guidance and codes are current?
Ofcom’s regulatory documents index listed updated Risk Assessment Guidance and Risk Profiles dated 25 June 2026. It listed illegal-content Codes of Practice for user-to-user and search services issued on 9 September 2026. Separately, it listed the Protection of Children Code of Practice for user-to-user services as issued on 4 July 2025, alongside 2025 guidance on children’s access assessments and risk assessments.
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Those are issue dates, not a guarantee that every measure applies immediately or to every service. Providers should check the Ofcom regulatory documents index for current documents and commencement notes, then identify the provisions relevant to their service type.
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