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The government has announced plans aimed at preventing children from taking, sharing or viewing nude images on smartphones and tablets, describing the proposals as a world-first approach to online child protection.
Speaking at London Tech Week, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said technology companies, including Apple and Google, would be expected to activate existing safety features or develop new technical solutions capable of detecting and blocking nude images on devices used by children. The measures would apply to both new and existing devices in the UK.
Under the proposals, adults would continue to be able to access, create and share adult content after completing an age-verification process. However, the government intends that protections for children would operate by default.
The government has given technology firms three months to demonstrate how they will implement the changes. Ministers have indicated that legislation will be introduced if voluntary action is not forthcoming, with potential sanctions including financial penalties and, as a last resort, possible criminal liability for company executives.
The announcement forms part of wider efforts to tackle online child sexual abuse, exploitation and children's access to pornography. Government figures cited alongside the proposals state that 91% of online child sexual abuse reports recorded in 2024 involved self-generated content created by children themselves. The government also said the average child first views pornography by the age of 13.
Sir Keir said that protecting children online required a more proactive approach from technology companies, arguing that the safety of children should not depend solely on parental controls or individual user choices.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said society had failed to keep pace with the evolving online risks facing children and argued that technology companies had a responsibility to make it impossible for children to create, share or view nude images on their devices.
The government acknowledged that some safety measures already exist. Apple has introduced age-checking features for iPhone users in the UK, automatically activating certain protections for users who have not verified that they are over 18. However, ministers said existing safeguards do not extend across all device functions, including cameras, third-party messaging services and search tools.
As a result, the government is seeking device-wide protections that would block the creation, storage, viewing and sharing of nude content by children across all applications and services.
The proposals have received support from a number of child protection and safeguarding organisations. The NSPCC described the move as a significant step in tackling online child sexual abuse, while the Internet Watch Foundation said device-level protections could play an important role in reducing the creation of new child sexual abuse material.
Dame Rachel de Souza, Children’s Commissioner for England, also welcomed the proposals, citing research indicating that more than a quarter of young people who had viewed pornography had first encountered it online by the age of 11. She described device-level protections as an additional safeguard, while reiterating calls for stronger assurances from online platforms regarding the safety of under-18 users.
Children's charities including Barnardo's, the Marie Collins Foundation and Women's Aid also expressed support for the proposals, while emphasising the need for effective regulation, enforcement and safeguarding measures to ensure that children who share images are supported rather than criminalised.
The announcement follows the recent closure of the government's consultation on children's use of social media, which attracted more than 100,000 responses from parents, young people and professionals. Ministers have indicated that a formal response will be published in due course as part of a broader programme of online safety reforms.
The proposals build on existing obligations under the Online Safety Act 2023, although the government has made clear that it considers further action necessary to address the risks posed by online sexual abuse, exploitation and exposure to harmful content.
