Technology Secretary Liz Kendall has stated her support for regulatory action by Ofcom, potentially including blocking access to Elon Musk’s social media platform X in the UK, should the platform fail to adhere to online safety legislation.
Ofcom is currently evaluating its options regarding X’s AI chatbot, Grok, following reports of the tool generating digitally altered images of individuals without their consent. This function was reportedly triggered when users were tagged beneath images posted on the platform. X has since restricted access to this image manipulation feature to paying subscribers.
However, Downing Street has characterized this change as “insulting” to victims of sexual violence.
In response, Musk posted on X, alleging that the UK government is seeking “any excuse for censorship,” replying to a post questioning the scrutiny applied to other AI platforms.
Secretary Kendall condemned the actions, stating, “Sexually manipulating images of women and children is despicable and abhorrent.”
She further added, “I, and more importantly the public, would expect to see Ofcom update on next steps in days not weeks.”
Kendall emphasized that the Online Safety Act “includes the power to block services from being accessed in the UK, if they refuse to comply with UK law” and affirmed that “if Ofcom decide to use those powers they will have our full support.”
The BBC has reached out to X for comment.
An Ofcom spokesperson said: “We urgently made contact [with X] on Monday and set a firm deadline of today [Friday] to explain themselves, to which we have received a response.”
“We’re now undertaking an expedited assessment as a matter of urgency and will provide further updates shortly.”
Ofcom’s authority under the Online Safety Act encompasses the ability to seek court orders to prevent third-party entities from facilitating X’s revenue generation or UK accessibility should the platform fail to comply.
These business disruption measures are largely untested at this time.
The use of Grok to generate non-consensual sexualized images has drawn condemnation from across the political spectrum, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer labeling it “disgraceful” and “disgusting.”
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage described the situation as “horrible in every way” and argued that X “needs to go further” than its recent modifications to Grok.
However, Farage deemed the prospect of banning X in the UK as “frankly appalling” and an affront to free speech.
The Liberal Democrats have advocated for a temporary restriction of access to X in the UK pending a thorough investigation of the social media platform.
Grok is a complimentary tool that users can directly engage with in posts or replies to solicit specific responses.
The tool remains capable of editing images on X through alternative avenues, such as the platform’s built-in “edit image” function or its separate app and website.
Numerous requests have surfaced involving the alteration of images of women to depict them in bikinis or scant attire, actions that individuals subjected to such requests have conveyed to the BBC as causing feelings of “humiliation” and “dehumanization.”
As of Friday morning, Grok informs users attempting to modify images uploaded to X that “image generation and editing are currently limited to paying subscribers,” encouraging users to “subscribe to unlock these features.”
Observations on the platform, reviewed by BBC News, suggest that only “verified” accounts with the blue checkmark, exclusive to X’s paid subscription tier, have been successful in requesting image modifications through Grok.
Dr. Daisy Dixon, a philosophy lecturer at Cardiff University and an X user who reported an increase in the use of Grok to digitally undress her, welcomed the change but characterized it as “like a sticking plaster.”
“Grok needs to be totally redesigned and have built-in ethical guardrails to prevent this from ever happening again,” she told the BBC.
“Elon Musk also needs to acknowledge this for what it is – yet another instance of gender-based violation.”
Hannah Swirsky, head of policy at the Internet Watch Foundation, stated that the change “does not undo the harm which has been done.”
“We do not believe it is good enough to simply limit access to a tool which should never have had the capacity to create the kind of imagery we have seen in recent days,” she said.
The charity previously reported that its analysts had discovered “criminal imagery” of girls aged between 11 and 13 which “appeared to have been created” using Grok.
Increasingly, Labour MPs are expressing discontent with the party’s reliance on X for disseminating its political messaging.
Leaked messages from the Parliamentary Labour Party’s WhatsApp group, used to distribute announcements for backbench Labour MPs to share on social media, reveal that at least 13 Labour MPs have urged the government to discontinue using the platform.
The messages, initially reported by Politics Home and reviewed by BBC News, indicate that Labour MPs are calling on the government to “take a stand” and “put our messages out in other places.”
One MP stated, “As some of us have requested since Musk went all fascist, rather than X, our government should start using another platform.”
Another commented, “Any images of children (and women) in government comms on X put those children in harms way.”
Earlier on Friday, Downing Street suggested that the government would continue posting on X.
The prime minister’s official spokesperson told reporters changes to the way Grok complied with user requests to edit images on the platform showed X “can move swiftly when it wants to”.
They said it was “abundantly clear that X needs to act and needs to act now”.
“It is time for X to grip this issue, if another media company had billboards in town centres showing unlawful images, it would act immediately to take them down or face public backlash,” they added.
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