Ofcom seeks to classify body-shaming and depression content as priority online safety risks

The UK Office of Communications (Ofcom) has proposed moving content that promotes body shaming and depression into the 'priority content' category under the Online Safety Act. The move follows findings that current voluntary measures and existing regulations have failed to significantly reduce the exposure of minors to such material on major social media platforms.

According to Ofcom's latest report, nearly 70% of children aged 11 to 17 encountered harmful content in the months following the implementation of new child safety codes in 2025. While 42% of youth reported exposure to body stigma content and 23% to depression-related material, platforms have largely resisted changing the algorithmic feed structures that facilitate these encounters. Ofcom noted that YouTube and TikTok have yet to fully adopt recommended modifications to their content feeds.

The report underscores the limitations of current automated moderation systems. Because body stigma and depression content are highly contextual, existing machine-learning tools often fail to distinguish between supportive discourse and harmful content. Ofcom’s assessment also highlights that while age-assurance measures have successfully limited access to pornography, they have not curbed the prevalence of social-media-driven psychological harms.

If implemented, the proposal would require all platforms operating in the UK to implement systematic protections against these categories of content. The agency has opted to exclude AI chatbots and extreme violence from this specific recommendation, citing separate ongoing government efforts to draft legislation covering those sectors.