The Australian Government has released the details of the new laws that will strengthen the eSafety Commissioner’s powers to enforce the removal of illegal content no matter where it is hosted. 

Under the Online Content Scheme and Abhorrent Violent Conduct Material, websites or apps will either be delinked from search engines or removed from app stores if they systematically ignore takedown notices from eSafetyon illegal content. 

If individuals and organisations don’t act swiftly in response to an eSafety take-down notice, they may face significant financial penalties – up to $111,000 per offence for individuals and $555,000 for corporations. 

These updates will provide the eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant with the powers required for the removal of harmful online content hosted overseas that can be accessed by Australians. 

Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts Paul Fletcher said the Australian Government is serious about protecting Australians from exposure to seriously harmful and illegal online content. 

“Australia has been world-leading when it comes to online safety and, together with the eSafety Commissioner, we are delivering a much safer online experience for every Australian,” Minister Fletcher said. 

“The shocking events in Christchurch in 2019, where a single terrorist was able to live stream their crimes using social media, was horrific and completely unacceptable. Since that event, Australia has led the world in requiring digital platforms to lift their game in tracking terrorism content domestically, and through the agreement of other world leaders at the G20.”

Although the Online Content Scheme has successfully operated for over 20 years, Minister Fletcher said that the Online Safety Act extends the reach of the scheme overseas in recognition of the global nature of the internet. 

“Online communities don’t have borders, and yet many Australians access materials online. This new scheme will hold industry accountable for keeping users safe and empower the eSafety Commissioner to remove the worst of the worst online content no matter where it is,” he said. 

A new website blocking power has also been provided to eSafety Commissioner so that they can move quickly to require internet service providers to block access to websites hosting abhorrent material such as a live-streamed terrorist attack to stop its spread.

The release of the Online Content Scheme follows the recently announced Adult Cyber Abuse scheme, a statutory complaint and take-down scheme to be administered by the eSafety Commissioner. 

The Online Content Scheme and Abhorrent Violent Conduct Material will expand the powers of the eSafety Commissioner to address a wide range of online harms starting on 23 January 2022 along with the Online Safety Act. 

Source: Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts Media Release

Eliza Sayon

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Eliza is a content producer and editor at Public Spectrum. She is an experienced writer on topics related to the government and to the public, as well as stories that uplift and improve the community.

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