Britain issues first online safety fine to US website 4chan

LONDON (Reuters) -Britain said on Monday it had issued U.S. internet forum site 4chan with a 20,000 pound ($26,644) fine for failing to provide information about the risk of illegal content on its service, marking the first penalty under the new online safety regime.

Media regulator Ofcom said 4chan had not responded to its request for a copy of its illegal harms risk assessment nor a second request relating to its qualifying worldwide.

Ofcom said it would take action against any service which "flagrantly fails to engage with Ofcom and their duties under the Online Safety Act" and they should expect to face penalties.

The act, which is designed to protect children and vulnerable users from illegal content online, has caused tension between U.S. tech companies and Britain.

Critics of the law have said it threatens free speech and targets U.S. companies.

Technology minister Liz Kendall said the government "fully backed" Ofcom in taking action.

"This fine is a clear warning to those who fail to remove illegal content or protect children from harmful material," she said.

The U.S. site, along with another forum site Kiwi Farms, filed a case in the United States against Ofcom in August, saying its enforcement of the online safety law violated Americans' right to freedom of speech.

The lawsuit said Ofcom sent "threatening communications" to U.S.-based internet companies that interfered with their constitutional rights and operations.

Ofcom said the fine would increase by 100 pounds a day from Tuesday for either 60 days or until 4chan provided the information.

If 4chan ignores the fine, Ofcom can take steps to stop internet service providers allowing access to its site in Britain.

Ofcom said two file sharing services had acted to prevent the spread of child sexual abuse material after it had identified concerns.

Four other file sharing services had "geo-blocked" access to their sites from UK-based IP addresses in response to the regulator's enforcement action, it said.

($1 = 0.7506 pounds)

(Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Sarah Young)