Suicide forum is subject of first Ofcom probe, BBC understands

A pro -suicide forum is investigated by the online organizer in the United Kingdom, realizing the BBC – the first of which is used by new powers under the online safety law.

This comes after I informed BBC News about the forum for three years, Link it to at least 50 deaths in the UK.

The site contains tens of thousands of members, including children, users discuss suicide methods, exchange instructions on how to buy and use a potential toxic chemical.

Last month, Offcom gained powers to take action against sites that host illegal articles.

This first investigation can lead to court fines or orders against those who run the forum.

The families whose loved ones loved after contacting the site welcomed this step, but they called for Offcom to move as quickly as possible.

Vlad Nicholin Kaisli, from Southampton, died in May last year, 17 years old.

His parents have evidence that he was A coach and encouraged his private life by members of the site, That is not naming.

He bought a toxic chemical and continued instructions on how to finish his life.

His parents, Anna and Graham, called for the site to ban the site to save lives.

“On any point we say enough, enough, because these young people do not deserve death,” says Anna. “Whenever they take action, the more we stop deaths associated with this forum,” Graham agrees.

The online safety law has become a law in October 2023 and Offcom has spent the past 18 months in setting guidelines and symbols of platforms that must be followed.

On March 17, Offcom obtained powers to take action against sites that host illegal content, including suicide assistance.

All websites will now have to show that they have systems to remove illegal materials.

If they fail to do so, the regulator can obtain court orders to prohibit platforms or impose fines of up to 18 million pounds.

The investigation is the first step before any enforcement procedure is carried out.

But Offcom faces a number of obstacles, including the fact that those who run this forum are unknown and that it is hosted in the United States.

BBC News has revealed how much more than 50 suicides in the United Kingdom are linked to the forum.

In October 2023, the British Broadcasting Corporation faced an American man, Lamarcus Small, who is believed to have placed the site in 2018. In March of last year, We have also tracked a toxin seller in Ukraine that was linked to the site.

BBC also joined the forum using a fake identity, assembling a list of the dead and exposing the partner section where members can find a person who dies with him.

Catherine Adenikan and the wife of the son Melanie Saville made a campaign to close the site since Joe Catherine, Joe, took his life in April 2020.

He was a member of the forum for less than a week, but the 23 -year -old learned how to buy and use a toxic chemical.

He left a note to his mother saying: “Please do your best to close this site to anyone.”

Together, they sneaked the site, documented the numbers of delegations associated with it and identified the people who sell the chemical.

They were pressuring the ministers, their local deputy and speaking to the media in an attempt to close the forum. They say it was five years old.

“Every day there are new people who register on the website,” Melanie says.

I was asked about the fulfillment of Offcom, she says: “They have known for a long time enough about this site and what is happening. They don’t need to pass through long operations to be able to download it. They need to take the action now.”

BBC News also revealed that at least six trials have written to government departments since 2019, calling for the closure of the forum.

We have learned a number of police forces and the National Crime Agency also realized the forum, and we have achieved in its associated deaths.

Vlad Anna and Graham’s parents say that the failure to work by the authorities has assigned their son’s life.

“If they take action before, our son will be on the top floor on his computer. But we are here now, and he is not.”

If you are affected by any of the problems in this story, you can find information and support on BBC Actionline is here.