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Review of the Unlawful Material Codes

Public consultation is now open for the review of the Unlawful Material Codes (Phase 1 Online Safety Codes).

 

These Codes are mandatory, and enforceable regulations under the Online Safety Act 2021 that include obligations on digital services across the tech stack to take action against the most serious unlawful online content, including child sexual abuse material (CSAM), pro-terror material, and material promoting extreme violence, including from hosting services to ISPs, search engines, app stores and social media services. The Unlawful Material Codes form a crucial part of Australia’s world leading online safety framework, meeting or exceeding comparable international regimes in scope.

The review is examining whether the Codes remain current. Specifically, the associations will consider:

  • Changes in the threat and technological landscape, such as the rapid growth of generative AI tools.
  • Changes in Australia’s regulatory settings, including the commencement of the co-regulatory Age-Restricted Material Codes and the Government’s plans for a Digital Duty of Care.
  • The need to resolve terminology inconsistencies and ensure compliance measures are clearly understood.
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Unfair Trading Practices Bill for Small Businesses

There are over 2.6 million small businesses in Australia, comprising more than 97 per cent of all
businesses, with over half of all Australian businesses being sole traders.7 Within the franchising
sector, almost all franchisees are small businesses.8
During past consultations, stakeholders have submitted that in certain transactional contexts, some
small businesses face many of the same vulnerabilities as consumers when acquiring goods or services
from large businesses. Like consumers, small businesses, such as sole traders,
9 may face information
asymmetries and resource and power imbalances.10 Moreover, small business owners from culturally
and linguistically diverse backgrounds can share the same types of vulnerabilities as individual
consumers of the same cohorts.11
As such, stakeholder feedback suggests that in some situations (e.g. subscriptions, digital platforms,
standard terms), small business purchases resemble consumer-made purchases, and that small
businesses may

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Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018

The review’s recommendations are principally directed at reducing complexity and improving the agility, clarity and responsiveness of the SOCI Act, including through targeted legislative reform.

In response, the Department of Home Affairs is progressing a second tranche of reforms. The proposed amendments would:

  • reduce unnecessary complexity and regulatory duplication
  • modernise and refine sector and asset coverage
  • clarify legislative expectations, assurance mechanisms, and governance arrangements
  • better assess whether security and resilience outcomes are being achieved. 

A key objective of these reforms is to make the framework clearer and easier for regulated entities to use. Clearer statutory concepts, guidance materials and assurance arrangements would help entities understand:

  • what they need to do
  • when obligations apply
  • who is responsible for compliance
  • how to demonstrate compliance.

These changes aim to support a more mature and effective regulatory framework that can assess whether risk management arrangements are implemented and operating as intended.

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