UK’s communications regulator Ofcom yesterday said it has fined video sharing platform MintStars £7,000 for failing to adequately protect children from accessing online pornography.

Under existing laws which pre-date the Online Safety Act, UK-established video-sharing platforms (VSPs) are required to  have measures in place to protect under-18s from videos containing restricted material, including pornography.

The industry guidance sets out, among other things, that if a VSP has restricted material of a pornographic nature on its service, it should have  robust “access control” processes that prevent children from encountering it.

Ofcom’s investigation found that between November 2023 and August 2024, MintStars did not have sufficiently robust measures in place, or implement measures effectively, to protect children from accessing pornographic content.

“Specifically, we have found that content of a pornographic nature was available on the platform, and accessible to any person who accessed the site, both through short ‘preview’ videos and following subscription to particular creators’ content.

“We have found that ‘self-declaration’ by users that they were over 18 and a general disclaimer within MintStars’ terms and conditions that the site was only for adults were not appropriate forms of age verification to protect under-18s from accessing pornographic and other restricted content,” Ofcom said in a statement.

MintStars’ failings represent a serious breach of its duties under the VSP regime to protect under-18s from restricted material. As a result, Ofcom said, it has imposed a financial penalty of £7,000 on the company. This includes a 30 percent discount on the amount it would have otherwise imposed, to reflect MintStars entering into a settlement with Ofcom and admitting full liability for this breach.

The fine also takes into account MintStars’ small size, as well as its low revenue and its financial position. MintStars has been cooperative with Ofcom’s investigation and has taken steps to remedy the harm by implementing age assurance technology on its platform, the regulator added.