Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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446. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the steps being taken to examine ways to enforce age verification obligations on online service providers and hold them to account for failure to do so, as per the Programme for Government commitment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15565/25]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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Coimisiún na Meán is Ireland’s new online safety and media regulator and is at the heart of Ireland’s online safety framework. It was established under the Online Safety and Media Regulation (OSMR) Act and is independent in its functions under section 10 of the Broadcasting and Other Media Regulation Acts, 2009 and 2022.

As provided for under the OSMR, in October 2024, An Coimisiún adopted Ireland’s Online Safety Code for designated video-sharing platforms established in Ireland, including TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and X. The Code sets out what they must do to protect users: in particular, they are obliged to put measures in place to protect children from harmful content online, have age assurance measures where appropriate, provide parental controls and user-friendly, transparent reporting and flagging mechanisms. Part A of the Code, which has applied since November 2024, provides that designated services shall establish and operate age verification systems with respect to content which may impair the physical, mental or moral development of minors. Part B of the Code, which will apply from July 2025, contains specific obligations, including that designated services shall implement effective age assurance measures to ensure that, for example, adult-only video content cannot normally be seen by children. An Coimisiún is responsible for the implementation and enforcement of the Online Safety Code.

Additionally, An Coimisiún is Ireland’s Digital Services Coordinator for the EU Digital Services Act (DSA) and as such, works with the European Commission to ensure platforms put in place the systems and processes required to minimise the availability of illegal content. Among other things, under the DSA, the obligations applying to very large online platforms and search engines include requirements to complete risk assessments in relation to the exposure of children and young people to illegal and harmful online content. These services must then address this risk of exposure, including by means of age-verification or age-assurance.

A failure to comply with any of these measures can lead to significant financial sanctions, and under the OSMR, continued non-compliance can lead to criminal sanctions for senior management.