Online safety watchdog, Ofcom, has launched new industry guidance demanding tech firms deliver a safer online experience for women and girls in the UK.A new five-point plan will help drive change and ensure tech firms are held accountable. This includes ensuring compliance with their legal duties under the Online Safety Act, strengthening industry Codes, meeting with firms for close supervision, publicly reporting on progress, and highlighting lived experience.Firms will also consider introducing prompts asking users to reconsider before posting harmful content, imposing timeouts for those who repeatedly attempt to abuse or target victims, and demonetising posts Which (👉 Read also: Which teams are on course for the Champions League knockouts?) promote misogynistic abuse and sexual violence.Eni Aluko: Social media abuse left me fearing for safetyThe guidance was developed with insights from victims, survivors, safety experts, women's advocacy groups and organisations working with men and boys.Research found female footballers were 29 per cent more likely to be targeted by online abuse than their male counterparts during recent World Cups.Nearly 70 per cent of boys aged 11-14 have been exposed to online content that promotes misogyny and other harmful views, and 73 per cent of Gen Z social media users have witnessed misogynistic content online.The Revenge Porn Helpline found 98 per cent of intimate images reported were of women, and 99 per cent of deep fake intimate image abuse depicted women. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Jess Carter responds to the racist abuse she's received at Euro 2025 Sport England and WSL Football have welcomed the guidance, calling for better protection for sportswomen on social media.Dame Melanie Dawes, Ofcom's chief executive, said: "When I listen to women and girls who've experienced online abuse, their stories are deeply shocking. Survivors describe how a single image shared without their consent shattered their sense of self and safety. Journalists, politicians and athletes face relentless trolling while simply doing their jobs."No woman should have to think twice before expressing herself online, or worry about an abuser tracking her location."That's why today we are sending a clear message to tech firms to step up and act in line with our practical industry guidance, to protect their female users against the very real online risks they face today."With the continued support of campaigners, advocacy groups and expert partners, we will hold companies to account and set a new standard for women's and girls' online safety in the UK." Twitter This content is provided by Twitter, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies. You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Twitter cookies or to allow those cookies just once. You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options. Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Twitter cookies. To view...
Ofcom launches new guidance for tech firms to deliver online safety for women
