UK's Ofcom probes TikTok over age checks, seeks Google's help on porn searches
By Patricia Figueiredo ( July 16, 2026, 10:51 GMT | Insight) -- UK regulator Ofcom opened an investigation into TikTok’s age inference systems and called on Google and Microsoft’s Bing to curb the visibility of porn sites without age checks. In a statement Thursday, the watchdog warned that some social media platforms may be failing to identify significant numbers of children through their age inference methods, and that first-page Google and Bing results for general porn searches often lead to sites lacking age checks or UK geoblocks. TikTok said its age assurance tools comply with the UK Online Safety Act.TikTok is under investigation over its approach to verifying the age of children online, UK regulator Ofcom announced Thursday, warning companies that it has "serious doubts about the age inference methods used by some popular social media platforms."...
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