- with Senior Company Executives, HR and Inhouse Counsel
- in United States
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Children's Online Safety was set up in 2018. It has now opened a call for evidence on an inquiry into Artificial Intelligence (AI) Harms and Children's Online Safety called "AI and Online Safety: Safeguarding Children's Digital Futures".
The APPG says that the development and deployment of AI systems across digital platforms is accelerating rapidly. While AI offers opportunities for innovation and safety enhancements, it also presents emerging risks, particularly for children and young people online.
The Online Safety Act (2023) has laid out a foundational framework for protecting children online, but there is growing concern that it does not fully account for the scale and nuance of AI-related risks.
The inquiry seeks to examine the harms posed by AI to children in online spaces, and assess how effectively current regulations, including the Online Safety Act, address these risks. The inquiry will also examine how AI can help to deliver more effective safeguarding for children online and make recommendations for the UK Government to address any shortcomings in existing legislation.
The inquiry's objectives are to:
- Investigate the ways AI is perpetuating existing online harms, examining emerging harms and research that has been conducted into the impact of AI on children's well-being and development.
- Identify regulatory and legislative gaps in the Online Safety Act relating to AI technologies.
- Explore how AI can be used positively to support children's online safety.
- Recommend practical, child-centred approaches to AI governance and online safety in the context of the forthcoming AI Bill.
Joanie Reid, Chair, explained that the Online Safety Act was a significant step forward in protecting children online, but there is growing concern that it does not yet adequately address the scale and specificity of AI-related harms. The inquiry is an important opportunity to shine a light on these emerging risks, understand how children are being affected, and make sure that future legislation is informed by robust evidence and grounded in the best interests of children".
Written evidence is requested by 7 January 2025.
This week, Ofcom has issued an updated implementation timetable for the remaining phases of the Online Safety Act. We will publish an overview of the new timetable and government reaction in due course.
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