Ofcom published a report on 21 May saying two of the biggest video platforms — TikTok and YouTube — "failed to commit to any significant changes to reduce harmful content being served to children", a finding that, the regulator warned, shows the sites are still "not safe enough" for young users.
Dame Melanie Dawes, the regulator's chief executive, framed the report as a warning shot to Silicon Valley culture and to platforms that have resisted stronger protections for minors. On Thursday on the 's Today programme she said: "We're talking about a twenty-year culture at Silicon Valley of not taking safety seriously; you can't change that overnight." She added Ofcom was "deeply concerned" and "ready to take the toughest enforcement action" — even saying, "We will absolutely move into a formal investigation if we need to."
The weight of the report is numerical and immediate. Ofcom found that 84% of children aged eight to 12 were still using at least one major service with a minimum age of 13, and it concluded that TikTok and YouTube had not offered evidence of meaningful change. "Our wealth of evidence, published today, suggests they are still not safe enough," the regulator wrote.
The same report recorded a different response from three other platforms: Meta, Snap and Roblox agreed to stronger anti-grooming measures after Ofcom's demand for tougher protections. That split — two platforms judged unwilling to act and three accepting concrete steps — is what gives the finding particular force as the government's consultation on whether to ban social media for under-16s heads toward its close.
Ofcom also said it would share concerns with the government that sites were not effectively enforcing minimum age rules for children, and warned that stronger legislation may be needed if industry fixes do not materialise.
The companies pushed back in their own words. YouTube emphasised its work with child safety experts and said it provides "industry-leading, age-appropriate" experiences for children, and highlighted tools for parents, including the ability to set time limits for the scrolling Shorts feed using its short-form video timer. TikTok called the regulator's criticism "very disappointing" and noted it had already stopped direct messaging for under-16s.
The contrast between regulator and platforms opens a tension that runs through the report. Ofcom judged the platforms' assurances insufficient; the platforms pointed to existing safety features and programs. Social media consultant and analyst Matt Navarra said the exchange marks a shift in how the issue is being understood: he described it as "a product problem" and asked pointedly, "did the platform remove harmful content quickly enough?" and "why did the platform show it to a child in the first place?"
Child safety advocates welcomed Ofcom's tougher language. Jennifer Powers, who has worked on technology and children, called the report "a really significant intervention from Ofcom" and said: "We know that what's needed is a huge culture change in this country with regard to children and addictive technology, children and their use of screens." She added, "That doesn't mean that we should give them a carte blanche to steal our children's childhoods and to have such a negative impact."
The report followed an earlier call from the regulator for stronger action on children's online safety and sits against international experiments in age limits: Prof Victoria Baines noted the findings were unsurprising given the limited success seen so far in removing under-16 accounts in Australia after that country's social media ban.
What happens next is concrete: Ofcom said it will share the report's concerns with government and flagged its readiness to open formal investigations and to use the full force of enforcement if platforms do not change course. With the government's consultation soon ending, ministers will now have new regulatory findings to consider — and the choice is narrowing between relying on platform goodwill or imposing new legal rules backed by enforcement that Dame Melanie Dawes has said her agency will not shy away from.
