Government give tech firms three months to block explicit images

The Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, revealed today that the government are giving big tech companies three months to implement technical solutions to detect and block nude images for children.

At a speech for London Tech Week, Starmer announced new requirements for social media platforms and tech companies to enforce online safety for children. Announcing reforms to the ability to send and receive nude images, the Prime Minister said, “for too long people have been told that is simply the price of modern tech. That nothing can be done. That government is powerless. That parents just have to accept it. I reject that completely.”

Details released by the Home Office after the speech show the government’s aim to be the first country in the world where it is impossible for children to take, send, or receive nude images on their devices. They call on big tech companies such as Apple and Google to implement on-device features and other technical solutions that would detect and block naked images for children. This would be implemented for under-18s, with those who are older still able to take and send nude images.

The government has called on tech companies to implement these features within three months, otherwise legislation will be enacted to force them to activate blocking software, as well as issuing fines for companies who fail to comply. The government have identified that 91% of the child sexual abuse material reported in 2024 contained images generated by the children themselves.

“The pace of change cannot be an excuse for harm” said the Prime Minister. “And where technology poses a threat to our people, to our children, we will act quickly and firmly.” Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, said companies have a “moral duty to act”, which Technology Secretary, Liz Kendell that “no parent should have to worry that giving their child a smartphone opens the door to abuse and exploitation.”

Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, welcomed the intention behind the new plans but said that “banning certain features is not enough”. She went on: “Social media is for adults, not for children. These platforms are designed to be addictive and social media companies should not be profiting off young people's anxiety, mental health or depression.”

This announcement comes at the same time that the government have launched a call for evidence to shape new guidance on screen time for children. The consultation will last for three weeks and be run by the Children’s Commissioner for England, Rachel de Souza. She has stated that her aim is to focus on “banning the companies” rather than “banning the children”.

A consultation on restrictions for social media for under-16s, including a possible ban, has now ended, and the Prime Minister is expected to announce measures to restrict these platforms in the coming days. Some have criticised the Prime Minister for announcing these measures in the run up to a by-election and possible leadership challenge, including Liberal Democrat deputy leader, Daisy Cooper, who said that Starmer was acting in the “context of a leadership challenge rather than doing it because it’s the right thing to do”.