February 10, 2020

In the October 2018 Budget the Chancellor announced that the CDEI would be exploring the use of data in shaping people’s online experiences.

The Review relates closely to the planned Online Harms Bill, the Competition and Markets Authority’s market study into online platforms and digital advertising, and the Information Commissioner’s Office’s code of practice on age appropriate design for online services.

The evidence base was informed by a landscape summary (led by Professor David Beer of York University); an open call for evidence; a UK-wide programme of public engagement; and a regulatory review of eight regulators. The CDEI also consulted widely in the UK and internationally with academia, civil society, regulators and the Government. It also held interviews with and received evidence from a range of online platforms in addition to advertising companies and industry bodies.

The CDEI says that its recommendations “aim to make online platforms more accountable, increase transparency, and empower users to take control of how they are targeted”. These include:

• new systemic regulation of the online targeting systems that promote and recommend content, such as posts, videos and adverts;
• powers to require platforms to allow independent researchers secure access to their data to build an evidence base on issues of public concern, from the potential links between social media use and declining mental health to its role in incentivising the spread of misinformation;
• platforms to host publicly accessible online archives for “high-risk” adverts, including politics, “opportunities” (e.g. jobs, housing, credit) and age-restricted products; and
• steps to encourage long-term wholesale reform of online targeting to give individuals greater control over how their online experiences are personalised.

When establishing the CDEI, the Government committed to publicly respond to its recommendations within six months of publication.

The CDEI’s proposals focus on the Government’s Online Harms Bill, review of online advertising regulation, and government announcements on electoral integrity and reform of competition regulation in digital markets. The CDEI says that it will be engaging with the Government on these programmes and monitoring their progress closely. It aims to support the Government and regulators to help deliver the CDEI’s recommendations. To access the full report, click here.