The Online Safety Bill, which returns to Parliament on December 5, will have its ‘legal but harmful’ section removed. Labour says this “gives a free pass to abusers” but the government insists it will not weaken protection for children. Read on to learn more about how deepfake pornography and ‘downblousing’ will become a crime under the legislation. Safety campaigners welcome the move by TikTok and Bumble to adopt a tool that tackles revenge porn content.

The big news this week is that the Online Safety Bill will return to Parliament after lengthy delays. It’s considered a once-in-a-generation chance to make the internet a safer place for children, but there are concerns it could undermine our privacy and freedom of expression. In other news, safety advice for youngsters should focus less on stranger danger, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Children’s Commissioner for England has urged parents not to buy their children a smart phone. A charity has revealed a disturbing case of a 13-year-old boy exposing himself to an older woman after copying what he had seen in porn.

Teenage vaping increases as 50% are exposed to e-cigarettes promotions in shops or online, Facebook trials additional profiles, Online Safety Bill faces delays and possible challenges and scammers target cost-of-living payments scheme and PayPal accounts.

Allegation against TikTok claims children died after attempting online challenge, Discord users warned of a “name and shame” scam, Ofcom to gain powers to ensure tech firms effectively tackle child sexual abuse material and scam checking tool is launched.

Ofcom launches campaign to encourage young users to report harmful content, UK Finance find over £1.3 billion lost to frauds in 2021, Snapchat introduces subscription with new location feature and government review finds biometric laws inadequate.

Instagram trials new age verification video tools, Meta is challenged by BBC about failure to remove upskirting images, FCA tackles more online scams and Children’s Commissioner issues call to action for parents of young children.

Meta introduces new parental controls on Instagram and Quest virtual reality headsets, Discord also improves moderation tools, young people identified as most at risk of online investment scams and new digital strategy announced by UK Govt.

New screentime controls available on TikTok, teachers warn of children’s excessive phone use as a result of lockdowns, Twitter makes improvements to reporting functions and Facebook is accused of failing to effectively monitor hate speech.

Ofcom study reveals women impacted more than men by online safety issues, cryptocurrency trading poses risks for problem gamblers, Lloyds warns of new advance fee fraud scam and the Online Safety Bill is explained in rap.