Protecting children or controlling the public? Inside internet censorship laws.

The global rise of internet censorship: Protecting children or controlling speech?

Introduction: The slippery slope of internet censorship

Internet censorship is accelerating across the globe under the stated aim of protecting children from harmful online content. Governments in the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, the Philippines, and beyond are rolling out legislation that requires internet users to verify their identities often with facial recognition or government-issued ID before they can access basic online services. While framed as safety measures, these laws threaten to compromise privacy, enable mass surveillance, and severely limit digital freedom.

This article examines the true nature and implications of these new laws, the risks of third-party data breaches, the global trend towards overreach, and the growing calls to resist this push towards authoritarian internet control. We also highlight the dangerous precedent being set for journalists, whistle-blowers, and marginalised communities worldwide.

The UK’s online safety act: Safety or surveillance?

The UK’s Online Safety Act came into full effect in 2025 and is enforced by Ofcom, the nation’s media and communications regulator. Originally promoted as a way to shield children from online harm, the Act goes far beyond adult sites and social media. Popular platforms like Spotify, Reddit, Discord, and X (formally Twitter) now require users to submit facial scans or government ID before gaining access.

These ID checks are not conducted by the platforms themselves but outsourced to unknown or opaque third-party services such as Yoti, Persona, AuthenticID, and KID. This data includes biometrics highly sensitive and permanent identifiers.

While these companies are tasked with keeping children safe, there have already been serious breaches, such as the 2024 exposure of license photos by AuthenticID. Moreover, the Tea App, a dating platform promoting safety for women, was recently hacked exposing photos and sensitive data that users had submitted for verification. These examples demonstrate the inherent risk in outsourcing sensitive personal data to private entities, some of which are not fully transparent about their security practices or jurisdictions.

From online games to music streaming: The expanding scope of censorship

While initial discussions around the Online Safety Act focused on pornography and adult content, enforcement has spread across a broad spectrum of services. Even video games like Mouthwashing and Vile Exumed have been removed from platforms such as Steam for being “too mature”. This hints at cultural censorship, where creative works are removed based on subjective criteria.

Services that have long been considered harmless like Spotify are now gatekept by facial recognition requirements. In the UK, many users have reported being locked out of their Spotify accounts unless they upload facial ID through Yoti. Similarly, Reddit users have faced the same with Persona. These platforms are not typically associated with adult content, yet they are swept into the enforcement net.

This mission creep shows how laws framed around “protecting children” are being used to enforce wider controls over digital expression and access.