Meta challenges Ofcom over sweeping UK data demands

Meta’s fight with Ofcom has opened a key debate over online data safety in the UK. Meta says the regulator wants too much data. Ofcom says it needs the facts to assess whether the new rules are working.

Why Meta is challenging Ofcom

As reported by The Indian Express, Meta, TikTok and X are challenging the UK regulator over the amount of data it has asked them to share. The case is an early legal test of the Online Safety Act 2023, which seeks to protect users, particularly children, from harmful and illegal content.

In February, Ofcom sent the firms notices asking for detailed figures on content moderation. These include how many posts were removed, how many had their reach limited, and how many users saw harmful content. The figures should help Ofcom test how the rules work.

Meta says the request is too wide. The court filings said Ofcom sought detailed data on seven Meta services without setting out a clear purpose for each part of the request. The company says this creates a heavy burden and has not shown why all the data is needed.

Ofcom says Meta’s data is needed

TikTok has also challenged the request. It says Ofcom went around another system for monitoring online safety that already had safeguards. X has called its request “the most burdensome information” demand it has faced. The firms say the amount and scope of the work are out of line with what is needed.

Ofcom rejects that view. It says the information is needed to check whether the new safety system is effective. The regulator also says it narrowed the requests before they were due to take effect. Ofcom said Parliament had asked it to regulate a sector that had gone more than 20 years without this level of oversight.

The Online Safety Act gives Ofcom power to ask platforms for information and take action when firms fail to meet their duties. For serious breaches, companies can face fines of up to 10% of their global business turnover.

A test for online safety rules

Platforms must assess the risk of illegal content, and services used by children must also assess risks to young users. Companies must review those risks before making major changes to how a service works. On October 6, Ofcom opened a separate inquiry into whether Meta had assessed the risks of Instagram’s Instants feature before launch.

The hearing over the data notices was due to end on Wednesday, October 7. Reports available by October 13 had not confirmed a final ruling. Meta is also involved in a separate legal challenge over how Ofcom calculates fees and penalties.

The case raises a question: how much information should a regulator be able to ask for when checking a large online service? Ofcom says it cannot measure safety without clear data. The companies say those requests must be relevant and fair. The court’s decision could help set limits for how the new law is used.

Author’s Opinion

The regulator needs data to check whether platforms protect users. Yet broad requests should come with clear reasons and limits. A fair process matters on both sides: safety rules must work, and companies should know what they must provide and why.

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