The Online Safety Act: too little, too late?

• The Online Safety Act 2023 sets out criminal offences relating to malicious online activity, including cyberflashing, revenge porn, and threatening communications.
• ‘Deepfakes’ and the rapid rise of online communications have brought these offences to public attention recently. Has the Act come at the right time to address new technologies—including those yet to come—or has the damage already been done?

The long-awaited Online Safety Act 2023, says the government, aims to make the UK ‘the safest place in the world to be online’. Whether the Act meets this aim is yet to be seen, with most provisions yet to come into force. However, it contains ambitious new provisions and obligations that have the potential to change the legal landscape dramatically. One of the ways it does this is by creating a litany of new criminal offences.

From 31 January