The home secretary has cautioned that the extremist content accessed by Southport assailant Axel Rudakubana could motivate further heinous acts unless technology firms intervene.
In a correspondence reviewed by Sky News addressed to TikTok, X, Meta, and Google, Yvette Cooper along with technology secretary Peter Kyle highlighted that the ramifications of allowing perilous material to persist online have been “exposed”.
During recent court proceedings, it was revealed that Rudakubana “swiftly” downloaded an al-Qaeda training guide and viewed disturbing videos of a terrorist knife attack shortly before he took the lives of three young girls.
The manual continues to be accessible online, even though it appears on a Home Office list of prohibited content that “may be beneficial to an individual preparing to commit an act of mass violence or terrorism,” the letter stated.
Additionally, disturbing footage depicting the stabbing of Sydney bishop Mari Emmanuel remains available in the UK, despite its removal by authorities in Australia.
Yvette Cooper following the attack in Southport. File pic: PA
The home and technology secretaries urged these companies to “promptly eliminate any unlawful content from this list available on your platforms, including the materials utilized by Axel Rudakubana”.
“The simplicity of access to such hazardous, illegal material is intolerable,” the ministers communicated.
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‘Our lives went with them – he took us too’
Commencing in March, companies will be mandated to eradicate illegal content, including violent material, from their platforms in accordance with the new Online Safety Act.
From the following summer, they will also be obliged to address content deemed unsuitable for minors.
The two secretaries conveyed to tech firms that they hold a “moral obligation” to tackle this content immediately.
“There is no rationale for postponing until the laws are enacted,” they stated.
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Axel Rudakubana received the second-longest life sentence in English history on Thursday after admitting guilt in court.
The 18-year-old was sentenced to life with a minimum of 52 years for the murders of Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, during a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in July of last year.
