A Government plan to stop people smugglers using social media to advertise small boat crossings across the English Channel could lead to legitimate footage being censored, campaign groups have warned.
Michelle Donnellan, the culture minister, said on Tuesday she would use the online safety bill to ensure social media companies proactively deal with “TikTok traffickers” or risk fines of up to 10% of turnover, as imposed by Ofcom.
But a refugee charity and a free speech campaign group warned it could force tech firms to legally take down material highlighting the plight of people seeking asylum in the UK.
Under the proposed amendment, aiding and abetting immigration offenses by posting videos of people crossing the channel – and which show this activity in a “positive light” – could constitute an online crime and should therefore be removed from social media platforms.
The Open Rights Group, which campaigns for privacy and free speech online, said the change could force social media companies to overzealously police their platforms. This can include removing legitimate posts with automated systems based on “perceptual hashing” that effectively compares posts taken from social media feeds against a database of images.
“Chances are they will rely on artificial intelligence techniques or content moderation systems based on perceptual hashing,” said Dr Monika Horten, policy manager at ORG. “Both options carry risks of overlocking.” Legitimate publications can be censored with serious consequences for public discourse in the UK.
Clare Moseley, founder of the charity Care4Calais, which cares for refugees crossing the Channel, said: “The controversial issue of crossing the Channel is a matter of life and death for the vulnerable people we represent. Our country’s response should be a matter of open and honest debate. If this bill limits our ability to highlight the plight of refugees, it not only threatens their rights, but sets a worrying precedent for activists.
TikTok said it now “proactively removes” content from people smugglers that promotes crossing the Channel.
Bridget Chapman, a Kent-based campaigner who has worked with people crossing the Channel, said banning social media posts would not stop the crossing.
“No one is taking this trip because of a TikTok video. We can close these routes overnight if the government gives people a safer way to get here.
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A Home Office spokesman said the amendment the government plans to table in the Lords would not affect humanitarian or journalistic publications about illegal immigration and did not technically constitute a new criminal offence.
They said: “Posts promoting illegal routes to the UK are putting vulnerable people’s lives at risk and funding nefarious criminal gangs. We are adding illegal immigration offenses that already exist in UK law to the list of priority offenses in the Bill.
“This means tech firms will need to take proactive steps to stop people smugglers from plying their trade on social media and remove content that seeks to aid, encourage or encourage people to commit an existing immigration crime.”
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