‘Toxic’ online culture fuelling rise in sexual assaults on children by other children, police warn – The Guardian

‘An alarming rise in sexual assaults on children by other children is being fuelled by access to a “toxic” online culture, Britain’s most senior child protection officer has warned, as an Observer investigation revealed a sharp increase in abuse by under-18s reported to police.’

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The Guardian, 17th February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Cheshire mechanic who ran child sexual abuse sites jailed for 16 years – The Guardian

‘A mechanic from Cheshire who created and ran child sexual abuse sites on the dark web has been jailed for 16 years.’

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The Guardian, 14th February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

First person in England and Wales convicted of cyberflashing – The Guardian

Posted February 13th, 2024 in indecent exposure, internet, news, sexual offences by tracey

‘A 39-year-old man has become the first person in England and Wales to be convicted of cyberflashing, which became an offence in January as part of the Online Safety Act.’

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The Guardian, 12th February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Laurence Fox loses High Court battle after calling two people paedophiles on social media – The Independent

Posted January 30th, 2024 in defamation, internet, media, news by tracey

‘The actor Laurence Fox has lost his High Court libel battle with two people he referred to as paedophiles on social media.’

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The Independent, 29th January 2024

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Fake reviews and hidden online charges to be banned under new rules – The Guardian

Posted January 24th, 2024 in bills, competition, consumer protection, internet, labelling, news by sally

‘Fake reviews and unavoidable hidden online charges – which cost consumers £2.2bn a year – are to be banned under new laws to force businesses to be more clear with shoppers.’

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The Guardian, 24th January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

BBC review: Ofcom to gain more powers over BBC News website – BBC News

Posted January 22nd, 2024 in BBC, enforcement, government departments, internet, news, ombudsmen by tracey

‘Ofcom is to gain more powers over BBC online services, including the BBC News website, as part of a series of changes unveiled by the government.’

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BBC News, 22nd January 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Online sex blackmailer who forced victim to abuse a seven-year-old jailed for 24 years – The Independent

‘An online sex blackmailer who subjected dozens of victims to “mental torture” – forcing them to film degrading sexual acts including the abuse of a seven-year-old girl – has been jailed for 24 years.’

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The Independent, 20th January 2024

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Sebastian Timmis: ‘Manipulative’ dating app fraudster jailed – BBC News

Posted January 17th, 2024 in fraud, imprisonment, internet, news, sentencing by sally

‘A “cynical and manipulative” fraudster who stole more than £30,000 from women he met online has been jailed.’

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BBC News, 16th January 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The Online Safety Bill: A clean bill of health? – 2 Hare Court

Posted January 10th, 2024 in bills, chambers articles, internet, malicious communications, news, sport by sally

‘The Online Safety Bill received Royal Assent on 26 October 2023, becoming the Online Safety Act (“the Act”). Its aim is to deliver on the government’s commitment to “make the UK the safest place to be online”, by imposing statutory duties on social media companies and search engines[1] (“service providers”) to ensure that they implement measures to protect individuals from illegal and harmful content online.’

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2 Hare Court, 28th November 2023

Source: www.2harecourt.com

FemTech: Top data protection tips for period and fertility-tracking apps – Mills & Reeve

Posted January 4th, 2024 in advertising, data protection, internet, news, pregnancy, women by sally

‘Following the announcement by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) of their review into how period and fertility-tracking apps process user information, my data protection colleagues David Hall and Robert Beveridge, carried out an assessment of the data protection compliance of a small sample of apps and provide their top tips for FemTech app providers.’

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Mills & Reeve, 3rd January 2024

Source: www.mills-reeve.com

Urgent need for terrorism AI laws, warns think tank – BBC News

Posted January 4th, 2024 in artificial intelligence, internet, news, terrorism by sally

‘The UK should “urgently consider” new laws to stop AI recruiting terrorists, a counter-extremism think tank says.’

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BBC News, 3rd January 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

‘Respected’ doctor caught selling drugs using dark web under Star Wars pseudonym – The Independent

Posted December 19th, 2023 in drug offences, extradition, guilty pleas, internet, news, sentencing by tracey

‘A doctor who bought illegal drugs to sell to customers on the dark web using the Star Wars pseudonym “Imperial Storm Trooper” has been jailed for five years.’

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The Independent, 17th December 2023

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Met Police: Ex-officers sentenced over racist WhatsApp posts – BBC News

Posted December 7th, 2023 in internet, news, police, racism, sentencing, suspended sentences, telecommunications by michael

‘Six former Metropolitan Police officers have been given suspended prison sentences for sending racist, sexist and homophobic messages on WhatsApp, after a BBC Newsnight investigation.’

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BBC News, 7th December 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

World first agreement to tackle online fraud – Home Office

Posted December 1st, 2023 in fraud, government departments, internet, news by tracey

‘The UK government and some of the world’s biggest tech companies have agreed a series of pledges to protect the public from online fraud.’

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Home Office, 30th November 2023

Source: www.gov.uk

Online Safety Act super-complaints process must not overwhelm Ofcom – OUT-LAW.com

Posted November 28th, 2023 in complaints, consultations, internet, news by tracey

‘The UK government must ensure that the way the new “super-complaints” process under the Online Safety Act is configured enables new risks and systemic issues across services to be addressed whilst guarding against the potential for overwhelming the regulator.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 27th November 2023

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Disbarred barrister convicted over antisemitic blog posts – Legal Futures

Posted November 23rd, 2023 in barristers, internet, Judaism, news, racism by sally

‘A former barrister who was disbarred for antisemitic and racist tweets has now been convicted for grossly offensive antisemitic material posted on his blog.’

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Legal Futures, 23rd November 2023

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Crunch time for cookie use, watchdog warns – BBC News

‘Some of the UK’s most visited websites could face fines unless they make it clearer that cookies are optional.’

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BBC News, 21st November 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

TikTok prankster Mizzy jailed for 18 weeks for breaching court order – The Guardian

Posted November 22nd, 2023 in consent, imprisonment, internet, news, sentencing, video recordings by sally

‘The TikTok prankster Mizzy has been jailed for 18 weeks by a judge who said his videos were “not funny”.’

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The Guardian, 21st November 2023

Source: www.theguardian.com

UK ICO challenges Clearview AI ruling – OUT-LAW.com

‘The UK’s data protection authority has lodged an appeal against a tribunal ruling that found it did not have the power to take enforcement action against facial recognition software developer Clearview AI.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 21st November 2023

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

BNE [2023]: Disclosure and the use of child decoy profiles in sexual communication cases – Park Square Barristers

‘The Appellant was charged with attempted sexual communication with a child (count 1) and attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity (count 2) after communicating with a decoy profile (‘X’).’

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Park Square Barristers, 31st October 2023

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk