Tech giants play 'compliance theater' while harmful content slips through

A panel of online safety experts testified before the UK Parliament's Communications and Digital Committee, accusing major tech companies like Google, Microsoft, Meta, and ByteDance of doing the bare minimum to comply with the Online Safety Act. Law professor Clare McGlynn highlighted inconsistent and superficial efforts to downrank harmful content—terms like 'rape porn' might be buried on page ten, while nearly identical searches like 'unwilling porn' or 'forced porn' appear on page three. Experts argue the companies have the technical capability to systematically block or demote illegal and violent material, but instead apply patchwork, half-hearted fixes that leave dangerous content easily discoverable.

This performative compliance fails the very individuals the legislation aims to protect, particularly young people and victims of gender-based violence. The tech giants' algorithms clearly understand related harmful terms, yet they choose not to act consistently, forcing under-resourced regulators like Ofcom to play catch-up. The takeaway is stark: billion-dollar platforms are treating user safety as a checkbox exercise rather than a genuine commitment, leaving harmful loopholes wide open for anyone determined to find them.