UK to legislate after Apple, Google miss child-nudity deadline

September 8, 2026 at 11:13 PM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

The UK government said Apple and Google failed to meet a September 8 deadline to block child nudity on their devices. Digital Secretary Lisa Nandy introduced legislation that would fine companies and hold executives criminally liable. The move follows three months of talks that officials said did not match the scale of the crisis.

Key Facts

The UK government gave tech firms three months from June to make child nudity on devices impossible.
Apple and Google missed the September 8 deadline, prompting the UK to introduce legislation.
Under the proposed law, companies failing to build child protection solutions into smartphones and tablets would face fines and potential criminal liability for bosses.
Digital Secretary Lisa Nandy plans to explore similar legal requirements for apps used by children, such as Instagram and Snapchat.
Signal accused the UK government of using the measures to rush 'invisible surveillance infrastructure' into law.

Missed Deadline

In June, the UK government told Big Tech it had three months to make taking, viewing, or sharing images of child nudity on their devices impossible. Then prime minister Keir Starmer said he expected tech firms to make that happen, and if they chose not to, the government would act and change the law. The deadline arrived on Tuesday, September 8, and the government said Apple and Google had failed. While engineers from Apple and Google had been working with the government since June, Digital Secretary Lisa Nandy told lawmakers they do not meet the scale of this crisis.

Legislative Response

Nandy introduced legislation that would require companies to build child protection solutions into all existing and newly sold smartphones and tablets in the UK. Companies failing to comply would face fines and potential criminal liability for their bosses. Nandy also plans to explore placing similar legal requirements on apps used by children, like Instagram and Snapchat. Neither Meta nor Snap immediately responded to a request for comment.

Industry Reaction

Apple said it shares the UK's commitment to combating exploitation and abuse online and has shared future plans to strengthen Communication Safety and other tools. Apple pointed to its Communication Safety feature launched in 2021, which blurs photos or videos detected to contain nudity on a child's device. Signal accused the UK government of using the measures to rush 'invisible surveillance infrastructure' into law. Signal warned that forcing UK residents to prove their age and have their content scanned in the name of child safety could be a slippery slope into wider surveillance.