UK Watchdog Hits Adult Website Operator With £1 Million Penalty Over Child Safety Failures

Key Takeaways

• £1 Million Fine: Ofcom penalizes AVS Group Ltd for failing to implement highly effective age assurance across 18 adult websites.
• Additional £50,000 Penalty: Issued for ignoring a legally binding information request from Ofcom.
• Daily Fines Kick In: AVS faces £1,000 per day if age-check issues continue after 6 December 2025, and £300 per day for delays in providing required information.
• Part of Wider Crackdown: Ofcom has opened 92 investigations into online safety compliance since new rules took effect.

Deep Dive

The UK’s online safety regulator is making an example of adult content providers who still allow children to stumble onto explicit material with little more than a checkbox standing in their way. On Thursday, Ofcom announced a £1 million fine against AVS Group, the operator of 18 adult websites, after concluding the company had failed to put “highly effective” age assurance in place, a new legal requirement under the landmark Online Safety Act.

A further £50,000 penalty was issued after the company failed to respond to Ofcom’s information demands, despite those requests being tied to a live investigation.

Ofcom says the enforcement reflects the urgency now embedded in the UK’s child protection rules. The agency began investigating dozens of adult websites within days of the July deadline, prioritizing platforms with the highest UK traffic and the greatest risk of harm.

AVS did introduce what it labeled age verification, but Ofcom determined the method fell short. In particular, a photo-upload process lacked “liveness detection,” leaving it vulnerable to simple workarounds like uploading an image of an unrelated adult.

The company now has until 5 p.m. GMT on 6 December 2025 to fix its compliance gaps. Miss that deadline, and £1,000 daily fines start ticking until March 2026 if needed. And until AVS supplies the full list of sites it operates, £300 per day will accrue under a separate penalty timetable.

A New Era of Accountability Online

For years, the online ecosystem hosting harmful or illegal content was effectively self-regulated. That changed this year as the Online Safety Act rolled out in phases—first requiring action against illegal content, and then tightening protections for children.

Ofcom’s latest progress report suggests cultural and operational shifts are already taking hold:

• More than half of the top 100 UK adult services have implemented age assurance
• Major platforms, from TikTok and YouTube to Roblox and gaming networks like Steam and Xbox, are adapting safety features aimed at younger audiences
• 92 investigations are underway related to online safety duties
• Some high-risk sites are now blocked to UK IP addresses entirely

New Ofcom research indicates public sentiment is shifting too. For example, 58% of parents say protections have already improved, while 67% expect even greater impact ahead. But officials aren’t celebrating early. Across child sexual abuse material, extremist content, online grooming and fraud, progress has been uneven and the stakes are high.

Pressure From Government and Child Safety Advocates

Oliver Griffiths, who leads Ofcom’s Online Safety Group, said platforms must commit to tangible change:

“The tide on online safety is beginning to turn for the better… But we need to see much more from tech companies next year and we’ll use our full powers if they fall short.”

Government, law enforcement and child safety organizations echoed the sentiment, recognizing improvements but warning that offenders have long exploited the speed and scale of online systems. Technology Secretary Liz Kendall called child online safety her “personal priority,” saying Ofcom has the government’s full backing. Groups including the NSPCC and Internet Watch Foundation underscored that predators still find too many gaps to exploit.

The National Crime Agency estimates around three-quarters of a million UK-based adults pose varying degrees of sexual threat to children. Each month, coordinated policing and industry reporting lead to around 1,000 arrests and that number isn’t declining.

With expectations rising, AVS Group won’t be the last platform forced to overhaul its approach. Ofcom has already widened its investigation into 4chan and will publish further enforcement updates in the months ahead.

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