JAKARTA – The British government is taking a hard line on the tech industry by proposing prison sentences for company executives who fail to remove intimate content without user consent.
In the latest amendments to the new crime and police bill, the government confirmed that the heads of digital platforms can be held personally responsible if they do not comply with Ofcom’s order to remove sensitive content.
“Tech executives could be held directly accountable if platforms fail to comply with the obligation to remove unauthorized intimate images,” the government said in a statement.
Global Fine Threats to Blocking
This step strengthens the previous policy which gives a 48-hour deadline for platforms to remove illegal intimate content after it is reported.
If it fails, companies can be fined up to 10 percent of their global revenue or even blocked entirely in the UK.
Now, through the latest amendment, the consequences are escalating: not only corporations are affected, but individuals at the executive level can also face prison sentences, fines, or both.
Fueled by Deepfake Cases and a Surge in Digital Violence
This policy comes amid growing global concerns about the misuse of technology, including the proliferation of deepfake pornography. One of the triggers is the controversy regarding the Grok AI assistant integrated on Elon Musk’s X platform, which was criticized for being able to produce explicit images based on the faces of real individuals.
The British Minister of Technology, Liz Kendall, emphasized that the impact of the spread of this kind of content is very serious, especially for women.
“Too many women have had their lives destroyed by the spread of intimate images without consent,” he said.
Deviant Content Expanded to Criminal Act
In addition, the government also proposes criminalizing the possession or distribution of pornographic content that depicts incest or adults pretending to be minors, with a threat of imprisonment of up to five years.
This step is part of the government’s big agenda to reduce violence against women and children, with an ambitious target of cutting the number by half in a decade.
Minister for victims and violence against women, Alex Davies-Jones, confirmed the government’s commitment.
“We will eradicate misogynistic and harmful content in cyberspace and create a safer digital space,” he said.
Amid the explosion of AI technology and social platforms, Britain is clearly sending a message: the era of “platforms are just containers” is over. Now, the responsibility has a name – and it can go to jail.
Follow VOI Whatsapp Channel
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language.
(system supported by DigitalSiber.id)