Ofcom is ‘actively reviewing’ a website showing hundreds of women and girls being followed and upskirted across the capital following Metro’s investigation.
Around 400 videos show victims being followed across London, including in Westfield Stratford, bus stops and tube stations.
The footage is publicly accessible on a website which charges users $50 to watch all of the 400 videos they claim to have.
Many of the victims appear to be underage, and nearly all of them are wearing shorts or leggings.
Ofcom said: ‘The law is clear that both upskirting and sharing any such content online is illegal. We were deeply concerned to hear what the Metro has uncovered, and we are actively reviewing a number of sites’ compliance with their duties under the Online Safety Act on these issues.’
They confirmed they have passed on Metro’s evidence to the online safety team. The website also has an accompanying Telegram channel with more than 1,600 subscribers.
Under the Online Safety Act, websites must have robust reporting measures, detect and remove illegal acts such as child sexual abuse material and have age verification.
Ofcom decides whether a site has complied with its duties, and issues fines to those who do not. They do not have the power to take down websites.
They said: ‘Under the Act, sites and apps must assess the risk of content like this circulating on their services, take steps to stop it appearing and act quickly to remove it when they become aware.
‘We’ve shown we’ll take action if evidence suggests companies are falling short.’
Since the Online Safety Act came into force 18 months ago, £6 million worth of fines has been issued against 10 adult sites.
One website, which uses nudification technology, was fined £50,000 for failing to use age-checks.
But it is up to the police to take the website down. Although they told Metro they encouraged victims to come forward, they did not confirm if they were actively investigating the site.
Detective Superintendent Dan Thompson, the Met’s VAWG lead said: ‘Women deserve to feel safe across London and nobody should have to live with the fear of being subjected to this intimidating behaviour.
‘We would urge anyone who has been affected by this, or any other concerning behaviour, to report it to us.
‘Although this incident has not been reported to the Met, we recognise the concern this may cause.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
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