United Kingdom’s communication regulator Ofcom yesterday opened an investigation into whether Meta has failed to comply with its duties under the Online Safety Act — the first of such probes under the new online regulations — by not adequately assessing the risks posed by Instagram Instants before it launched.

Ina statement yesterday, Ofcom said that risk assessments are fundamental to keeping users safer online.

Providers will not be able to protect people, especially children, without first understanding how harm could take place on their platforms, and how their features and functionalities could increase those risks of harm, it said.

“We have launched a formal investigation to establish whether Meta failed to comply with its duties under the Act by not carrying out a suitable and sufficient illegal content risk assessment and children’s risk assessment before the launch of Instants,” the Ofcom statement said.

Under the UK’s Online Safety Act, tech firms must assess and mitigate the risk of people in the country encountering illegal content and platforms likely to be accessed by children must also assess and mitigate the risk of under-18s being exposed to certain types of harmful material.

Providers must update their risk assessments before making any significant changes to their service’s design or operation.

Earlier this year, Ofcom warned major platforms they could face enforcement action if they did not assess the risk of significant changes before they are deployed.

In May, Meta launched Instants as a feature in Instagram, where content shared by users disappears after it has been viewed.

George Lusty, Director of Enforcement at Ofcom, said: “Our online safety laws are clear — significant changes to platforms must be risk assessed before they’re launched.”

The Online Safety Act sets out the process Ofcom must follow when investigating a company and deciding whether it has failed to comply with its legal obligations.

If the investigation finds that a company has broken the law, the regulator can require platforms to take specific steps to come into compliance and/or to remedy harm caused by the breach.

Ofcom can also impose fines of up to £18 million or 10 percent of qualifying worldwide revenue, whichever is greater.

Meanwhile, a Reuters report on October 5 from London stated that Meta, TikTok and X were challenging British regulator Ofcom over the amount of information it is demanding they provide under Britain’s nascent online safety regime.

The challenge is one of the first ‌in relation to the 2023 Online Safety Act, which sets tougher standards for platforms such as TikTok, X and Meta’s Facebook and Instagram with the aim to protect children from harmful and illegal content.