10 years since the Byron Review

Key findings 

Of Professor Byron’s 38 recommendations, only 13 have been fully implemented, including:

• tighter regulation of new forms of online advertising to children;
• a more consistent approach to age rating online games, and
• assessment of e-safety standards in schools as part of Ofsted inspections.

There is still much to do – 25 issues remain unaddressed. To make sure children have the same rights and security in the online world that they have offline, we are calling for a number of actions including:

• Establishing a set of minimum standards and a statutory code of practice for online providers. These standards should:
  
  
  • outline processes and procedures to ensure online platforms are safeguarding children effectively – including preventative measures to protect children from abuse
  • provide clear and consistent definitions of online abuse and exploitation
  • have clear and transparent processes for reporting, moderating and removing content from sites; verifying children’s ages and offering support to users when needed.

We hope the Government's Internet Safety Strategy will introduce these measures which would need to be applied consistently to all sites, apps and games where children interact online.