Commercial Awareness Compass #45 | Behind the firewalls: the legal risk inside the Online Safety Act

The UK’s Online Safety Act has officially come into force and with it, a sweeping overhaul of how digital platforms must operate. Tech companies are under pressure to redesign their systems and policies to comply, implementing mandatory age verification checks. Behind the political headlines lies a commercial and legal challenge that could expose platforms to multimillion-pound fines, reputational damage, and even criminal liability for senior executives. What happens when technology moves faster than regulation? Can platforms ensure compliance without weakening user privacy? And how will lawyers need to navigate this growing tension?