Online Safety Act: Ofcom Fines Begin, Free Speech Ends
Billions in fines, powers to block entire platforms, and the threat of criminal charges for tech bosses — Britain’s new law is censorship by design.
The Online Safety Act has barely come into force — and already the first fines are being handed down. Ofcom has issued a provisional penalty against the US platform 4chan for failing to hand over information, threatening a £20,000 charge plus daily penalties.
But 4chan is refusing to comply, declaring the UK regulator has no authority in the United States. The clash signals more than a legal fight across the Atlantic: it’s the opening shot in a new regime of censorship. While ministers claim to be “protecting” the public, ordinary Britons are already seeing their speech curtailed — from protests to posts to entire platforms disappearing.
A Law Built for Control
The Act hands Ofcom — and, ultimately, ministers — sweeping powers to decide what is “harmful” and to force tech companies to remove it.
Three powers in particular should alarm anyone who cares about free expression:
1️⃣ Billions in fines for tech firms
Ofcom can fine companies up to 10% of worldwide revenue or £18m — whichever is higher. Faced with that risk, platforms will over-comply and delete anything that might cause trouble — even if it’s perfectly legal.
2️⃣ Power to block entire apps and websites
Courts can order UK internet providers and app stores to block a service completely. They can also force payment processors, search engines, and ad networks to cut ties with a platform — effectively erasing it from public reach.
3️⃣ Criminal charges for tech bosses
Senior managers can be personally prosecuted if companies don’t hand over the data Ofcom demands. That threat ensures firms will censor first and ask questions later.
Already Silencing Speech
Ofcom’s action against the US platform 4chan shows regulators are ready to go after overseas sites, regardless of jurisdiction disputes. If enforced, it would be the first fine under the Act.
Wikipedia has already lost its High Court challenge against the law. That means even platforms designed to share knowledge face the risk of being forced to censor content or face crippling sanctions.
Even trivial spaces are being hit. Chatrooms about cider have gone dark, and VPN use is surging as people look for ways to escape the new regime.
We’ve Seen This Movie Before
During Covid, entire topics were blacklisted online: questioning vaccine safety, doubting lockdowns, even suggesting the lab-leak theory. Many of those debates are now mainstream. But at the time, government pressure made platforms silence them.
The Online Safety Act makes that model permanent.
The Child Safety Smokescreen
Ministers defend the Act as keeping kids safe. Yet Technology Secretary Peter Kyle claimed repealing it would put Nigel Farage “on the side of predators like Jimmy Savile.” A cheap smear that shows how loosely they weaponise the idea of child protection.
And while they posture about protecting children online, thousands have crossed the Channel — some later charged with sexual offences, including against minors. Where’s the protection there?
A Pattern of Cracking Down
We’ve already seen a 65 % surge in public order prisoners — that includes prosecutions for protest, social media posts, even chanting slogans — all while serious offenders walk free. Read more in “Jail for Speech, Freedom for Dangerous Offenders”
The Online Safety Act is the digital mirror of that crackdown — criminalising dissent in the public square, and throttling it online.
Wikipedia’s co-founder warned: “It’s a human rights violation.”
Wikipedia exists to share knowledge. If its founder says the law is dangerous to free expression, you might want to listen.
But ministers won’t — because this isn’t about protecting you. It’s about protecting them from you.
The Cost of Silence
If the Government really cared about safety, they wouldn’t be releasing violent criminals early because prisons are full — while building a system to censor ordinary people online.
This Act isn’t safety.
It’s infrastructure for censorship.
And now that it’s law, the chilling effect is already here.