Online suicide forum provider fined £950,000 for illegal content

The provider of an online suicide forum has been fined £950,000 for failing to protect people in the UK from illegal content.

The platform is said to have been linked with more than 130 deaths in the UK.

Regulator Ofcom has declined to name the forum or provider publicly due to the harmful nature of the content.

The investigation was the first brought under the Online Safety Act, which came into force in July and aims to make online spaces safer for users, particularly children.

The legislation requires companies to show their commitment to removing material related to suicide, self-harm, sexual violence and other illegal content.

Ofcom said the forum’s provider had failed “and continues to fail” to comply with its duties to assess and mitigate risk to people in the UK.

The decision follows representations by the provider and the assessment of “extensive evidence”.

The scale of the fine “reflects the serious and deliberate nature of the contraventions, and the risk of fatal harm to people in the UK posed by the content present on the service”, the regulator said.

The provider is said to have made attempts to restrict access to the forum from UK residents.

It now has 10 working days to ensure compliance with the law. If this does not occur, Ofcom could apply for a court order requiring internet service providers to block UK access to the site.