A pro-suicide forum linked to more than 130 UK deaths will face no further legal action from Ofcom, the regulator has admitted, saying it has exhausted its powers under the Online Safety Act.
Ofcom said the site had blocked access for the "vast majority" of UK users, and it had "no further legal routes available". However, it accepted that people would still be able to access the forum by using a VPN, which hides their location online.
“Ofcom says no further legal action possible against pro-suicide forum linked to over 130 UK deaths.”
Andy Burrows, chief executive of the Molly Rose Foundation, said the decision would "result in more lost lives" and that announcing it on the day a new prime minister was named showed "an utter lack of moral courage".
In response, an Ofcom spokesperson said the decision had been made a "matter of days ago" following "months of work to exhaust all possible legal routes". They said bereaved families were informed of the decision this morning after being contacted last week. "In that context, we do not consider it appropriate to delay the announcement further to accommodate today's political developments," they said.
Ofcom enforcement director Suzanne Cater said the regulator had used its powers "to the fullest extent possible". "We'll continue to monitor the forum closely to check the geoblock remains in place," she said.
The geoblock means people based in the UK are unable to access the site unless they mask their location through a VPN or similar means.
The forum was the first service to be investigated by Ofcom under the UK's online safety laws. BBC News investigations found that young people who had been on the site had been encouraged to and given instructions on how to take their own lives. It has been cited in multiple coroners' reports regarding the deaths of UK citizens.
In May, Ofcom issued a £950,000 fine to the site, saying it did not comply with the Online Safety Act "to protect people in the UK from illegal content", and warned it was preparing to seek a court order to block access if compliance issues were not addressed. The firm had until 12 June to pay the fine, but Ofcom said it has not paid. If a company fails to pay a fine, Ofcom can still try to recover the debt through UK-based assets if the company has any.
Ofcom said it was working with the government to explore whether its enforcement powers should be strengthened, particularly its ability to get a website blocking order through the courts, which would legally mandate internet service providers in the UK to block the website.
Separately, Ofcom has launched an investigation into TikTok over child safety measures, examining whether the platform is failing to protect children from harmful content.