Can X be banned under UK law and what are the other options?
The UK government is threatening Elon Musk’s X with the nuclear option under the country’s online safety laws: a ban.The social media platform is under pressure from ministers after it allowed the Grok AI tool, which is integrated within the app, to generate indecent images of unsuspecting women and children.The government has said it will support the media regulator Ofcom, which has launched an investigation into X, if it decides to push ahead with a ban.But is such a move likely?The Online Safety Act (OSA) contains a provision that allows Ofcom to seek a court order imposing “business disruption measures” on a website or app that is in breach of the legislation.These measures are in effect a block on the recipient operating in the UK.
This is because they include ordering an internet service provider to block access to a platform or requiring payment providers or advertisers to withdraw their services from that business,These measures are a de facto ban on the platform that is on the receiving end of them,Ofcom is focusing on whether X has breached the act in the following ways: failing to assess the risk of people seeing illegal content on the platform; not taking appropriate steps to prevent users from viewing illegal content such as intimate image abuse and child sexual abuse material; not taking down illegal material quickly; not protecting users from breaches of privacy law; failing to assess the risk X may pose to children; and not using effective age checking for pornography,In its statement confirming an investigation, Ofcom was clear that such a scenario would be an option of last resort if it finds X in breach, saying such a move was reserved for “serious cases of ongoing non-compliance”,Its words were less gung-ho than the government’s because if the watchdog doesn’t follow procedure under the OSA correctly, it faces the threat of X seeking a judicial review – a court process where a judge rules whether a decision made by a public body was lawful.
Banning X because the government of the day says it should be banned is not a legal basis for pulling the plug,Ofcom said it must follow due process as part of its investigation,“As the UK’s independent online safety enforcement agency, it’s important we make sure our investigations are legally robust and fairly decided,” it said,Ofcom’s own guidance also makes clear this is not workaday punishment under the act and such measures are not a “matter of routine”,“We acknowledge that business disruption measures are a significant regulatory intervention and therefore we are unlikely to find it appropriate to apply to the courts for business disruption measures as a matter of routine where we have identified failures, or likely failures, to comply with enforceable requirements,” Ofcom said.
The regulator can force companies to take specific steps to comply with the OSA or to remedy harms caused by breaching the legislation,It can also impose fines of £18m or 10% of worldwide revenue, whichever is larger,X’s revenues are not public but according to estimates from the market research company eMarketer it was expected to make $2,3bn in advertising turnover last year, which would equate to a fine of more than $200m,And of course Ofcom has to decide whether the OSA has been breached in the first place.
It will look at evidence of whether the law has been broken,If it decides there has been a breach, it will issue a provisional decision to the company, which will then be given an opportunity to respond before Ofcom makes its final decision,This is Ofcom’s most consequential investigation yet so it will not want to make mistakes in haste,But it has launched a formal inquiry very quickly, indicating an awareness of the public and political concern about the deluge of AI-made intimate images on X since Christmas,Lorna Woods, a professor of internet law at the University of Essex, said Ofcom could bring forward business disruption measures quickly.
“At one end of the scale you have a typical Ofcom investigation, which could take six to nine months.But at the other end Ofcom could take an expedited approach and decide there has been a breach quite quickly – and can seek to implement business disruption measures rapidly,” she said.Ofcom would have to decide that such is the seriousness of the breach, and X’s failure to remedy it, that it has to take the option of last resort.
John Higgins and Kyren Wilson win at Masters as curious run of 6-2 scorelines goes on
Kyren Wilson, the 2024 world champion, defeated Si Jiahui in impressive fashion to reach the Masters quarter-finals with the 6-2 result continuing a curious statistic: every match at Alexandra Palace this week had finished with the same scoreline. That record extended in the evening session as John Higgins saw off Barry Hawkins, 6-2, to reach the last eight.After edging the first frame following a run of snookers, Wilson – yet to win a tournament this season having broken his cue at the start of the campaign – looked set to build a maximum in the next, but just missed the 11th red into the bottom corner pocket as he moved 2-0 ahead.Si got on the board with a well-crafted break of 97 before the world No 2, who lost to Shaun Murphy in last year’s Masters final, dug in to re-establish his lead at 3-1 heading into the mid-session interval.Although Si pulled another one back by taking a close fifth frame, Wilson, looking to move on from a disappointing first-round exit to Elliot Slessor at the UK Championship, then took the sixth 82-28 before closing out an impressive victory with successive century breaks of 101 and 105
Shiffrin extends slalom stranglehold as Moltzan seals US one-two in Flachau
Mikaela Shiffrin completed another dominant night in Flachau, Austria, on Tuesday, winning a World Cup slalom to extend her season-long stranglehold on the discipline while leading an American one-two finish with teammate Paula Moltzan.Shiffrin followed up her fastest opening run with a composed second run to finish 0.41sec clear of Moltzan, claiming her sixth victory in seven slalom races this season. It was also Shiffrin’s record-extending 107th career World Cup win, her 70th in slalom and her sixth slalom victory on the demanding Flachau course.Moltzan, who was chasing her first career World Cup win, delivered a strong second run to secure second place, marking another podium in a season that has seen her establish herself among the world’s most consistent technical skiers
The hidden hierarchy of tennis practice courts: ‘I was back in the park, smelling the weed’
The unwritten rule in professional tournaments? Do not hog the practice court. But as leading players testify – the reality is very differentOn a cool Wednesday afternoon before the US Open last year, Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev were busy fine-tuning their games in an intense practice set at Louis Armstrong Stadium. Danielle Collins and Christian Harrison, semi-finalists in the mixed doubles tournament, were scheduled to take their place at the hour and the American pair duly arrived a couple of minutes before their allotted slot.An amusing scene soon unfolded. Medvedev and Zverev were clearly desperate to continue playing for a little longer, but their court time had run out
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Head coach Mike Tomlin is leaving the Pittsburgh Steelers after 19 seasons, the team confirmed on Tuesday.“Obviously, I am extremely grateful to Mike for all the hard work, dedication and success we have shared over the last 19 years. It is hard for me to put into words the level of respect and appreciation I have for Coach Tomlin,” Steelers president Art Rooney II said in a statement. “He guided the franchise to our sixth Super Bowl championship and made the playoffs 13 times during his tenure, including winning the AFC North eight times in his career.”Rooney added that the decision was ultimately down to Tomlin, saying the head coach had “decided to step down”
Finn Russell ready for bruising clash with Scotland colleagues against Edinburgh
Finn Russell is braced for a potentially bruising reunion with his Scottish international teammates but is intent on winning the “bragging rights” when Bath host Edinburgh on Friday in their Champions Cup pool decider. Russell has already messaged Duhan van der Merwe to warn him to expect a tough night and says the English champions are seeking to sharpen their attacking game in pursuit of a crucial home draw for the knockout phase.With the victorious side at the Rec set to top pool 2, the Scottish playmaker is anticipating a physical examination from an Edinburgh team he knows extremely well. “I’d imagine there’ll be a couple of late shots and being held on the ground which is always the case when you’re against your old side,” said Russell, who spent the first half of his professional career at Glasgow.“I’m not sure what the weather will be like but if it’s like it is now there’ll be a lot of balls going up in the air
Sport England suspends X social media account and takes aim at Elon Musk
Sport England has revealed that it has suspended its account on X, because the social media platform “increasingly promotes and monetises an environment that is hostile to women and girls”.In a blog post explaining the decision the Sport England chair, Chris Boardman, criticised X’s AI platform tool, Grok, saying it had “contributed to the amplification of and worse, normalisation of, misogynistic content”.“That runs directly counter to what we stand for,” said Boardman, who sits at the heart of a funding agency that invests £250m a year in grassroots sport and community projects. Regarding the decision to withdraw from X, he also pointed to the fact members of the England women’s football squad were attacked on the platform last summer. “Sport should always be a place where everyone feels safe and welcome,” he said
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