Today (30th September 2026) marks the date where online platforms are required to have measures in place to detect and prevent the spread of NCII content including explicit AI-generated deepfakes. Earlier this month, Ofcom announced that it would be monitoring how platforms are responding to non-consensual intimate image (NCII) abuse and whether they are meeting their new responsibilities under the Online Safety Act.
The regulator stated that platforms should be using proactive measures to tackle this harm; in particular, automated "hash matching" technology was highlighted as a solution to identify and prevent the sharing of known NCII. Where platforms have chosen not to implement hash matching, they will need to demonstrate that alternative approaches are equally effective.
Hash Matching Removes Content at Scale
One of the longstanding challenges in responding to intimate image abuse is that harmful content can spread quickly across multiple services before it is reported and removed.
Hash matching helps address this by enabling platforms to identify known abusive content before it can be uploaded or reshared. Rather than relying solely on repeated reports from users, the technology compares a digital fingerprint, known as a hash, against a database of previously identified content. If there is a match, platforms can take action before the image spreads further. This process enables the achievement of the previous prime minister’s commitment to a “one and done” system for tackling intimate image abuse.
This preventative approach has become increasingly important as concerns grow around the sharing of both real-life intimate imagery and AI-generated deepfakes. While effective reporting and takedown processes remain essential, prevention can significantly reduce the scale and impact of the harm experienced by victim-survivors.
StopNCII.org Remains the Recommended Solution
As part of its announcement, Ofcom confirmed its partnership with SWGfL, recognising the work developed through both the Revenge Porn Helpline and StopNCII.org with its own hash-matching technology working as an effective tool for preventing the redistribution of NCII online.
StopNCII.org allows adults at risk of intimate image abuse to create hashes of intimate images directly on their own device. The image never leaves their device, helping to protect privacy while enabling participating platforms to identify matching content and prevent it from being shared. The service also supports explicit AI-generated deepfakes,
Meet Your Obligations
For platforms looking to meet their obligations, StopNCII.org offers a proven and established solution that is already being used effectively across the world.
With Ofcom’s expectations now firmly established, the priority should be ensuring that protections are implemented consistently across industry.
SWGfL welcomes Ofcom's continued focus on tackling intimate image abuse and supporting safer online experiences for women and girls. Now the deadline has arrived, it was timely for Georgia Harrison to give a powerful speech at the Labour party conference where she illustrated how individuals now live their lives online and that ‘no one should have to live in a place without values’. She highlighted how the internet has now become the ‘largest classroom’ in the world where young males are taught harmful attitudes and behaviours towards women and girls, pushing narratives around how a woman’s body should be perceived as ‘content’. She ended with a call for change and for platforms to take accountability for improving the online landscape.
As well, it was encouraging to hear Lisa Nandy (Culture Secretary) deliver her speech at the Labour party conference where she said the UK would be ‘’pioneers of tech as a force for good” and would promote online spaces that were “genuinely safe, inclusive and empowering”.
We will continue to work with industry, Ofcom and partners to strengthen prevention, support those affected, and promote wider adoption of StopNCII.org in order to help stop this abuse before it occurs.
To learn more about StopNCII.org and how your platform can join the initiative, visit StopNCII.org.
