Ofcom opens investigation into online suicide forum under OSA
09/04/2025 | The Guardian
Ofcom, the UK communications regulator, has launched its first investigation under the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA), focusing on an online suicide forum. Ofcom is examining whether the forum's provider failed to implement adequate measures to protect UK users from illegal content, which includes material encouraging suicide.
Ofcom stated that its investigation would specifically assess whether the forum had appropriate safety measures in place for UK users, if it failed to conduct a necessary risk assessment of potential harms as required by the OSA, and whether its response to a request for information was adequate.
In 2023, the BBC reported that the forum has been linked to at least 50 deaths in the UK and has tens of thousands of members engaged in discussions about suicide methods.
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