Two of the UK’s most senior law enforcement officers have said that restrictions on under 16s’ access to unsafe online platforms are needed to protect children from harmful online offenders.

The calls made by National Crime Agency Director General Graeme Biggar and National Police Chiefs’ Council Chief Constable Gavin Stephens as government finalises policy on children’s online safety.

They say that, from a law enforcement perspective, the focus must be on preventing harm to children.

Online platforms have design features that criminals exploit to target children. This is not just social media apps, but also gaming platforms, messaging apps, devices and AI.

Given the scale of abuse and harm, these features should not be available on apps used by children. Tech platforms must effectively stop children using those features or make them safe. If they do not, the Government should ban them for U16s. 

The features that cause the most risk are commonly found across a range of well-known messaging, social media, gaming and AI platforms, and include:

• Mass discoverability of children - where children can be easily found or suggested to large numbers of unknown users, allowing offenders to identify and target victims at scale.
• Unrestricted contact from unknown adults - where any adult can message a child directly, creating the entry point for grooming and exploitation.
• Private or encrypted messaging – used by offenders to move conversations away from the original service into private chats – often on messaging apps – where no one else can see what is happening, and abuse can escalate undetected.
• Algorithmic recommendations that promote harmful content or contacts - where systems suggest accounts, videos or communities that expose children to violent or sexual content or individuals seeking to harm them. 
• Nude image sharing or streaming - where children can be coerced into producing or sharing sexual content, often in real time which can then be used for blackmail or further abuse.
• Weak age assurance - where children can easily access adult environments, and adults can misrepresent their age, undermining all other safeguards.

NCA Director General Graeme Biggar said: “Our assessment is clear: the online environment in its current form is not safe for children.

“The industry response has been too slow, while the problem has been getting worse.  Enough is enough.  Either the tech companies must effectively stop children using those features or make them safe. If they do not, the Government should be ban them for U16s. 

“The horrific cases that our officers are investigating every day tell us very clearly that the longer we wait, the more children we fail.

“We are talking about protecting our children from some of the very worst criminals: those who sexually groom and coerce, who blackmail young victims into sending them horrific sexual and violent images and videos of themselves. Offenders who plot to meet children in person to sexually abuse them and who try to radicalise them. Social media also enables drug distribution, fraud targeting young people, and the recruitment of children as money mules.

“Tech companies have shown that they are not implementing the changes that are needed. We cannot afford to delay any longer. Tougher legislation is now required to create a level playing field where everyone knows what is required if their products are to be made available to children.”

Chief Constable Gavin Stephens, Chair of the National Police Chiefs' Council, added: "In every other walk of everyday life there are laws and safeguards in place to protect children, and yet the online space remains something of a wild west where legislation and regulation has failed to keep up with the pace of technology.

"The risk to children and the harms caused are severe and wide-ranging. The online space has made it too easy for criminals, abusers, fraudsters and extremists to target the most vulnerable in our society and destroy lives.

"There is no doubt in my mind that technology companies are failing in their duty of care to those using their platforms and services, and are knowingly using designs and features which are easily exploited by criminals. This refusal to prioritise safety by design is boosting criminals’ speed and reach. This must stop and I know there is more than can be done.

"To be absolutely clear, this is not about punishing children, this is about protecting them.

"We want children to be able to use social media channels, gaming sites and AI capabilities safely and free from the risk of harm. We firmly believe that the restrictions we're calling for will be the catalyst for tech companies to make these absolutely essential changes so that, eventually, children will be able to do so."

There are up to an estimated 840,000 UK adults who pose a sexual risk to children, equivalent to 1.5% of the UK population. Referrals of possible child sexual abuse from online platforms to the NCA reaching almost 100,000 in 2025, a fourfold increase in six years, and equivalent to 250 referrals a day.

The 2026 NCA National Strategic Assessment also showed that online-facilitated child sexual abuse (CSA) now accounts for at least 42% of recorded CSA offences in England and Wales.

The law enforcement response has never been more joined up and tenacious; across the UK 1,000 offenders are arrested and approximately 1,200 children safeguarded each month. And the NCA’s CEOP Education team works to reduce the threat from online child sexual abuse through education.

Any proposed restrictions to online access must be designed to complement, not replace, these efforts.

The NCA and NPCC recommendations are:

1. Target features, not app names. We do not want to ban apps; we want them to be safe.  So we are being clear what specific features most often put children at risk.  Tech platforms must effectively stop children using those features or make them safe; if they do not, the Government should ban them for U16s.
2. Robust and consistent age verification. Age checks only protect children if they actually work. Platforms must use reliable verification, such as identity checks at account creation, and apply child-appropriate settings automatically. Ticking a box claiming to be over 16 is not sufficient.
3. Close the workarounds. Protections must be designed so they cannot be easily bypassed. If an account begins behaving in ways inconsistent with a child's profile, for example attempting to access restricted features, the platform should temporarily lock those features and re-verify age, rather than allowing safeguards to fall away.
4. Safeguard, never criminalise. Children must never be blamed or punished for abuse they experience online. Reporting harm must always lead to support. A child who reports being coerced into sharing images should receive help, not consequences for bypassing age checks.
5. Prevent nude image sharing with children. Many of the most serious and lasting harms begin the moment an image is created. Children’s devices should block the ability to take, share or view nude images.
6. Effective online safety education. Restrictions alone are not enough. Children need the knowledge and confidence to stay safe, particularly around key transitions. Schools should provide age-appropriate guidance before and after the age of 16, so that protections do not simply disappear overnight.

22 May 2026