Facebook and Twitter Face a U.K. Levy If Cyber Bullying Not Tackled

Facebook and Twitter Face a U.K. Levy If Cyber Bullying Not Tackled

Social-media giants such as Facebook and Twitter will have to reveal the scale of cyber bullying in the U.K. and face being made to pay the cost of dealing with it, according to Bloomberg.

Under the latest guidance by the U.K. government, technology companies will be required to publish an annual report on how complaints are handled, the reported abuse that is pulled down and the extent of their efforts to moderate bullying or offensive content about children, women, gay people or religions.

One of the proposals is for “an industry-wide levy so social-media companies and communication service providers contribute to raise awareness and counter internet harms,“​ according to a statement that didn’t give further details.

“Behavior that is unacceptable in real life is unacceptable on a computer screen,“ Culture Secretary Karen Bradley said in an email released by her office. "We need an approach to the internet that protects everyone.“

The campaign is part of the government’s wider strategy to force technology companies to accept greater responsibility for their content. The U.K. has been pushing the envelope in terms of how willing it is to go after Silicon Valley. Efforts to end hate speech and trolling on social media have intensified in the wake of five terror attacks this year, yet the desire to regulate tech firms, in ways that are unprecedented, risks driving them offshore.