The Online Safety Act: Misinformed on misinformation

The role of social media in spreading disinformation and misinformation has brought renewed scrutiny on the Online Safety Act, with Sadiq Khan commenting that he thinks it is not ‘fit for purpose’. 

This echoes criticism at the time the bill was passed from the fact checking organisation Full Fact, that the Act fell short in regulating misinformation, with references limited to requirements to set up an advisory committee on disinformation and misinformation in s. 152 and to assist the public in understanding its impact in s. 165. This differs from the approach in the EU's Digital Services Act, where disinformation is specified as a systemic risk to the Union for very large online platforms, such X and Meta, to manage in the design and functioning of their services.

It will be interesting to see whether this commentary influences the timing and content of the guidance and codes of practice Ofcom is required to produce for the Act to come fully into force. In particular, will non-illegal disinformation and misinformation be given a more prominent role, or is legislative intervention needed to bring it properly within the Regulator's scope.