UK Digital Secretary Nicky Morgan MP has confirmed plans to abandon a proposed policy to introduce age verification checks for commercial pornography providers.
In a written statement issued on 16 October, Morgan said that the government would not proceed with Part 3 of the Digital Economy Act 2017 relating to age verification for online pornography. She insisted that the objectives of the Digital Economy Act would be delivered through the government's proposed online harm regulatory regime, which will impose a duty of care on companies. Morgan also stressed the government's continued commitment to protecting children online and stop them from accessing adult content.
The move was welcomed by the Open Rights Group (ORG). Executive Director Jim Killock said that age verification for online porn as currently legislated would have caused massive privacy issues that would have resulted in blackmail scams. However, he added that it was still not clear what course of action was intended by the government, and that the ORG would remain alert to make sure that any new proposals pose no threat to people's privacy.
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), which had been designated as the Age-verification Regulator under the 2017 Digital Economy Act (DEA), also acknowledged the government's announcement. In a statement, the BBFC said that it had all systems in place to act as AV Regulator, and that it would work closely with the government to ensure that the DEA child protection goals are achieved.
