Government seeks “nudity-detection algorithms” in iOS and Android, report says.

“The UK government wants technology companies to block explicit images on phones and computers by default to protect children, with adults having to verify their age to create and access such content,” the FT report said. “Ministers want the likes of Apple and Google to incorporate nudity-detection algorithms into their device operating systems to prevent users taking photos or sharing images of genitalia unless they are verified as adults.”

  • tal@lemmy.todayEnglish
    9·
    1 day ago

    If the UK gets its way, operating systems like iOS and Android would “prevent any nudity being displayed on screen unless the user has verified they are an adult through methods such as biometric checks or official ID. Child sex offenders would be required to keep such blockers enabled.” The Home Office “has initially focused on mobile devices,” but the push could be expanded to desktops, the FT said. Government officials point out that Microsoft can already scan for “inappropriate content” in Microsoft Teams, the report said.

    “The Home Office, which didn’t care much about verifying that its schemes were enforceable if they promised the potential of being able to announce a programme with the potential of winning social conservative votes, plunged ahead. It seemed like this new scheme would work marvelously and herald in a new era of Victorianism in the UK. That is, until a small boy by the name of Edward Woolsey in Liverpool discovered that he could magically manufacture a pornography-viewing device by taking any inexpensive, used Android device and tethering it to his phone. Word spread quickly among the youth.”