UK tech firms warned of huge fines if they fail to remove knife crime content

Social media companies will be fined up to £60,000 every time a post related to knife crime is not removed from their pages, in a bid to stop children viewing "disgusting" content.

The new sanction expands previously announced plans to fine individual tech executives up to £10,000 if their platforms fail to remove material advertising or praising knives after 48 hours of warning from police, British media reported, according to the Telegraph.

This means that tech platforms and their executives could collectively face up to £70,000 in fines for any knife crime-related posts they fail to remove, with new laws applying to online search engines as well as social media platforms and marketplaces.

Crime and Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson said the content young people are exposed to online every day "is disgusting", adding: "That's why we are now going further than ever to hold technology companies to account for not doing enough to protect young people from content that incites violence, particularly among young boys."

Sanctions for technology platforms will be introduced through an amendment to the Draft Law on Crime and Policing.

The Home Office said today's announcement follows "significant consultations" with the Coalition to Combat Knife Crime, launched by British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in September as part of his drive to combat knife crime by half a decade. /Telegraph/