Suicide Forum Ruled in Breach of Online Safety Act After Failing to Block UK Users
Ofcom, the UK's online regulator, has determined that a suicide forum is in breach of the Online Safety Act for not properly blocking access to users in the United Kingdom when ordered to do so last year. The forum, which has been linked to multiple deaths in Britain, could now face fines and have its access blocked by internet service providers, depending on its response over the next 10 days.
Investigation and Legal Breaches
Ofcom launched an investigation in April last year, as encouraging or assisting suicide is a criminal offence in the UK. The forum had implemented a geoblock to restrict access from devices appearing to be physically located in the UK, but it also posted a message on its landing page promoting ways to circumvent this block. Although the message was removed, in November, Samaritans discovered that the forum remained directly available to UK users via a "mirror site"—the same site with a different domain name.
This failure to comply with duties under the Online Safety Act includes not adequately assessing the risk of illegal content and not swiftly removing such content when aware of it. Ofcom stated, "After a period of monitoring the service, we became concerned that the block was ineffective and/or was not consistently maintained, and continued to a provisional breach decision as a result." The regulator has given the forum provider 10 working days to respond to these provisional findings before making a final decision.
Concerns from Bereaved Families and Campaigners
Coroners have been raising concerns about links between the forum and suicides in the UK since at least 2019, according to campaigners. The family of 17-year-old Vlad Nikolin-Caisley from Southampton reported that he took his own life in 2024 after using the site, which Ofcom is not naming publicly. Bereaved families and the Molly Rose Foundation—established after 14-year-old Molly Russell died by suicide following exposure to harmful social media content—have criticized Ofcom for not acting swiftly enough.
Last autumn, they stated, "there are serious questions to answer about why Ofcom has delayed taking action on multiple breaches of the law." Their analysis found that coroners have raised concerns about various substance or suicide forums with government departments at least 65 times since 2019, with evidence of deaths linked to the forum occurring in the UK even after the geoblock was implemented.
Calls for Swift Action
Andy Burrows, chief executive of the Molly Rose Foundation, emphasized the urgency of the situation: "This forum exists to coerce and groom vulnerable, often young, people into ending their lives and this action from Ofcom couldn’t come soon enough. It is now crucial that the regulator acts swiftly to shut the site down with fines or criminal sanctions that match the level of harm caused." He added that working with survivors and bereaved families, they have identified at least 135 UK deaths linked to the forum, urging Ofcom to act decisively to prevent further loss of life.
In related support information, in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or via email at jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, individuals can call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is available at 13 11 14, with other international helplines accessible at befrienders.org.
