http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/50/section/18Online Safety Act 2023enStatute Law Database2026-09-30Expert Participation2026-09-30 PART 3Providers of regulated user-to-user services and regulated search services: duties of careCHAPTER 2Providers of user-to-user services: duties of careCategory 1 servicesDuties to protect news publisher content181This section sets out the duties to protect news publisher content which apply in relation to Category 1 services.2Subject to subsections (4), (5) and (8), a duty, in relation to a service, to take the steps set out in subsection (3) before—ataking action in relation to content present on the service that is news publisher content, orbtaking action against a user who is a recognised news publisher.3The steps referred to in subsection (2) are—ato give the recognised news publisher in question a notification which—ispecifies the action that the provider is considering taking,iigives reasons for that proposed action by reference to each relevant provision of the terms of service,iiiwhere the proposed action relates to news publisher content that is also journalistic content, explains how the provider took the importance of the free expression of journalistic content into account when deciding on the proposed action, andivspecifies a reasonable period within which the recognised news publisher may make representations,bto consider any representations that are made, andcto notify the recognised news publisher of the decision and the reasons for it (addressing any representations made).4If a provider of a service reasonably considers that the provider would incur criminal or civil liability in relation to news publisher content present on the service if it were not taken down swiftly, the provider may take down that content without having taken the steps set out in subsection (3).5A provider of a service may also take down news publisher content present on the service without having taken the steps set out in subsection (3) if that content amounts to a relevant offence (see section 59 and also subsection (10) of this section).6Subject to subsection (8), if a provider takes action in relation to news publisher content or against a recognised news publisher without having taken the steps set out in subsection (3), a duty to take the steps set out in subsection (7).7The steps referred to in subsection (6) are—ato swiftly notify the recognised news publisher in question of the action taken, giving the provider’s justification for not having first taken the steps set out in subsection (3),bto specify a reasonable period within which the recognised news publisher may request that the action is reversed, andcif a request is made as mentioned in paragraph (b)—ito consider the request and whether the steps set out in subsection (3) should have been taken prior to the action being taken,iiif the provider concludes that those steps should have been taken, to swiftly reverse the action, andiiito notify the recognised news publisher of the decision and the reasons for it (addressing any reasons accompanying the request for reversal of the action).8If a recognised news publisher has been banned from using a service (and the ban is still in force), the provider of the service may take action in relation to news publisher content present on the service which was generated or originally published or broadcast by the recognised news publisher without complying with the duties set out in this section.9For the purposes of this section, a provider is not to be regarded as taking action in relation to news publisher content in the following circumstances—aa provider takes action in relation to content which is not news publisher content, that action affects related news publisher content, the grounds for the action only relate to the content which is not news publisher content, and it is not technically feasible for the action only to relate to the content which is not news publisher content;ba provider takes action against a user, and that action affects news publisher content that has been uploaded to or shared on the service by the user.10Section 192 (providers’ judgements about the status of content) applies in relation to judgements by providers about whether news publisher content amounts to a relevant offence as it applies in relation to judgements about whether content is illegal content.11Any provision of the terms of service has effect subject to this section.12In this section—areferences to “news publisher content” are to content that is news publisher content in relation to the service in question;breferences to “taking action” against a person are to giving a warning to a person, or suspending or banning a person from using a service, or in any way restricting a person’s ability to use a service.13In this section references to “taking action” in relation to content are to—ataking down content,brestricting users’ access to content, orcadding warning labels to content, except warning labels normally encountered only by child users,and also include references to taking any other action in relation to content on the grounds that it is content of a kind which is the subject of a relevant term of service (but not otherwise).14A “relevant term of service” means a term of service which indicates to users (in whatever words) that the presence of a particular kind of content, from the time it is generated, uploaded or shared on the service, is not tolerated on the service or is tolerated but liable to result in the provider treating it in a way that makes it less likely that other users will encounter it.15Taking any step set out in subsection (3) or (7) does not count as “taking action” for the purposes of this section.16See—section 19 for the meaning of “journalistic content”;section 55 for the meaning of “news publisher content”;section 56 for the meaning of “recognised news publisher”.S. 18 not in force at Royal Assent, see s. 240(1)