Two thirds of teens and young adults have recently come across at least one piece of harmful online content, according to Ofcom.

But only around one in six go on to report the content, said the regulator.

The findings come as the government’s long-awaited Online Safety Bill continues to make its way through parliament

The new legislation, which will be enforced by Ofcom, will include new criminal offences for falsifying and destroying data and aims to protect children from harmful content and limit people’s exposure to illegal content.

The most common potential harms identified by the young people Ofcom surveyed include: offensive or ‘bad’ language – 28 per cent; misinformation – 23 per cent; scams, fraud and phishing – 22 per cent; unwelcome friend or follow requests – 21 per cent and trolling – 17 per cent.

A further 14 per cent were faced with bullying, abusive behaviour and threats; violent content; and hateful, offensive or discriminatory content, targeted at a group or individual based on their specific characteristics.

“As we prepare to take on our new role as online safety regulator, we’re already working with video sites and apps to make sure they’re taking steps to protect their users from harmful content,” said Anna-Sophie Harling, online safety principal at Ofcom. “Our campaign is designed to empower young people to report harmful content when they see it, and we stand ready to hold tech firms to account on how effectively they respond.

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