White Ribbon UK's response to Ofcom's latest draft Guidance

Ofcom has published draft Guidance focused on actions technology firms need to take to improve women and girls' safety online. The guidance seeks to tackle four overlapping issues; online misogyny, pile-ons and online harassment, online domestic abuse and intimate image abuse.  

The guidance has set out nine practical steps that tech firms should implement, focused on taking responsibility and designing their services to prevent harm and to support their users. These actions include ensuring better governance and accountability processes, more transparency about women and girls' online safety, reducing harmful content, and giving users better control over their experiences. 

The guidance has great potential to have positive impact and we hope tech companies will apply it fully, showing accountability in how they are complying with the actions set out.  

The Government must ensure that education, particularly for men and boys, goes hand in hand with this guidance and all other guidance relating to the Online Safety Act 2023. Individuals must be provided the opportunity to develop their positive behaviours online, as well as their critical thinking skills and better understanding the importance of displacing harmful content.  

This is incredibly important given recent research showing that nearly ‘70% of boys aged 11-14 have been exposed to online content that promotes misogyny and other harmful views.’ The research further found that ‘over half of boys in that age group are aware of and have engaged with content from influencers with ties to the manosphere.’ (Vodafone, 2024) 

Peter Lassey, Chair of the Board of Trustees of White Ribbon UK, joined a debate on BBC 5 Live focused on the new draft guidance, stressing the importance of prevention in tackling the issue of online abuse and violence against women and girls. He pointed out that men and boys need better guidance in navigating the complexities of the online world. 

Peter said, “men and boys need support in understanding this new world that they’re emerging into.” Peter emphasised how social media algorithms are designed to push out content that keeps users engaged by deliberately fuelling  polarisation. 

Following Peter’s earlier comments, an audience member of the BBC 5 Live debate stated that, “The White Ribbon campaign is a great example of men stating where they are on this. It needs to be loud, it needs to be bold, and it needs to be clear. We are not going to take young boys on a journey unless we show them what good behaviour looks like.” 

White Ribbon UK determinedly campaigns on the importance of engaging men and boys and providing them with the tools to create positive change, to make sure that everyone is safe from harassment and abuse online. We will be responding to Ofcom's call for responses to its draft Guidance.