British communications regulator Ofcom and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) yesterday published a joint statement to provide further clarity for industry on how to meet the UK’s Online Safety Act and data protection legislation when deploying age assurance.

As the regulators for online safety and data protection in the UK, Ofcom and the ICO are committed to working closely together on our shared goal of protecting children from harm online, the joint statement said.

Earlier this month, Ofcom and ICO set out their expectations for services most used by children to do more to protect children online, including by enforcing their minimum age requirements with effective age checks.

Yesterday’s joint statement reinforces those expectations and illustrates close engagement on strategic and operational matters related to age assurance. Aimed at services likely to be accessed by children and in scope of the Online Safety Act and UK data protection legislation, it uses practical examples to explain how services can meet their obligations when implementing age checks.

Ofcom and the ICO’s common approach to age assurance is designed to be risk-based, flexible, tech-neutral and future proof, allowing space for innovation in the context of rapidly evolving technology and market developments.

In response to industry questions, yesterday’s statement sets out the following:

# Ofcom and ICO’s common approach to age assurance.

# Age assurance obligations under the OSA or the Online Safety Act.

# Age assurance obligations under data protection legislation.

# Practical examples illustrating how to implement an age assurance process that meets both online safety and data protection requirements.

# A summary of requirements related to age assurance under the Online Safety Act and UK data protection legislation.

#Ofcom and the ICO will continue to collaborate on this important area and respond, as appropriate, to any future developments in age assurance.