Jun 11, 2025 12:30:00

UK regulators investigate 4chan and other sites for possible breaches of online safety laws

On June 10, 2025, the UK communications regulator

Ofcom announced that it had conducted an investigation into nine sites and services, including the online message board 4chan.

Enforcing the Online Safety Act: Ofcom opens nine new investigations - Ofcom
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/online-safety/illegal-and-harmful-content/enforcing-the-online-safety-act-ofcom-opens-9-new-investigations

In a statement on June 10, 2025, Ofcom announced: 'Ofcom has today launched an investigation into whether seven file-sharing services, 4chan and pornography provider First Time Videos failed to comply with their obligations under UK online safety legislation.'

The investigation announced by Ofcom is based on the Online Safety Act, which will be gradually implemented from 2024. Details of this law, which strengthens the safety responsibility imposed on content providers, are summarized in the following article.

UK's online safety law comes into force, criticised for effectively shutting out small site operators from the internet - GIGAZINE

The investigation looked at the online message board 4chan, the pornography service First Time Videos LLC, and seven file-sharing services: Im.ge, Krakenfiles, Nippybox, Nippydrive, Nippyshare, Nippyspace, and Yolobit.

The investigation will focus on whether these content providers breached their obligations to put in place appropriate safeguards to protect UK users from unlawful activity and content, to complete and keep records of appropriate and sufficient risk assessments of unlawful harm, and to comply with other statutory requests for information.

If the investigation finds that the services have breached the Online Safety Act, they could be fined up to the greater of £18 million or 10% of their applicable global revenue.

In the most serious cases, authorities may also seek 'disruptive measures' from the courts, such as asking payment providers or advertisers to remove their services from the platforms or asking internet service providers to block access to them.

Ofcom said it 'expects to make further announcements in the coming months about formal enforcement actions, particularly relating to the new obligations coming into force under the Act.'