Digital Government News

eSafety issues new era of transparency for the digital industry

Eliza Sayon Sep 1, 2022

2 min read

The eSafety Commissioner is now requiring big tech companies to provide detailed information on the steps they are taking to meet the Australian Government’s Basic Online Safety Expectations.

Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland welcomed the first formal information requests issued by the eSafety Commissioner under the Online Safety Act 2021.

“This first set of notices marks a key step in the implementation of the Basic Online Safety Expectations,” she said.

“The reporting from industry will help inform future government decisions around what needs to be done to protect Australians online, and improve transparency to the public.”

Under the Act, the eSafety Commissioner issued legal notices to Meta, WhatsApp, Apple, Microsoft, Skype, Snap, and Omegle.

The notices require the companies to explain the strategies they are doing to meet the Expectations which are set out in the Act and supporting legislative instruments.

This first round of reports will focus on what these companies are doing to address child sexual exploitation material.

Lack of transparency within digital platforms is an ongoing challenge for governments that are trying to protect their citizens from online harms. To date, the industry has chosen what information they will release about the types of harms occurring on their services, the steps they are taking to address them, and how this data is presented.

Service providers issued with a notice under the Expectations are now required to report to the eSafety Commissioner within 28 days. Failure to report may result in heavy fines of up to $555,000 a day.

eSafety has also recently released regulatory guidance on the Expectations to help the industry comply with these notices.

“The Albanese Government supports online safety for Australians, and we expect the same from industry,” Minister Rowland said.

“We urge service providers to comply with notices from the eSafety Commissioner and report on the steps they are taking to keep Australians safe online.”

eSafety also plans to issue further notices to additional providers in due course to build a comprehensive picture of online safety measures across a wide range of services.

“Industry must be upfront on the steps they are taking so that we can get the full picture of online harms occurring and collectively focus on the real challenges before all of us. We all have a responsibility to keep children free from online exploitation and abuse,” eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said.

Source: Minister for Communications media release. Content has been edited for style and length.

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.