Samaritans has welcomed the government’s announcement that AI chatbots will be brought into scope of the Online Safety Act, describing it as a positive first step towards reducing emerging online harm
We welcome the announcement from the government today that it is taking immediate action to reduce online harm. We are particularly pleased that the government has listened to our calls to bring AI chatbots into the scope of the Online Safety Act. As we set out in the policy brief we shared with government last week, we have serious concerns that some chatbots are currently unregulated.
Increasingly, more people in the UK turn to using chatbots to support their mental health, often due to long delays to accessing NHS services, leaving them feeling like chatbots are the best option for support. However, we have serious concerns about the effectiveness and safety of chatbot and AI platforms. Worryingly, this includes the provision of information or encouragement on how users can harm themselves.
We will continue to work with government, Ofcom and platforms to reduce potential harm from AI chatbots. This is a positive first step but will only have the necessary impact if Ofcom is prepared to take the urgent and targeted action required against emerging harms.