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Ofcom Weighed Urgent Court Action Over Grok Deepfakes
Ofcom CEO Melanie Dawes told MPs the UK regulator considered urgent court action over sexualized deepfakes generated with Grok, but the legal threshold prevented immediate intervention. The regulator is continuing its investigation into X w
AI.info Team · Written with AI · fact-checked ·
Ofcom considered seeking urgent court action over sexualized deepfakes made with X’s Grok chatbot, but the legal threshold stopped the regulator from intervening immediately. Chief Executive Melanie Dawes told MPs on Tuesday, October 20, that the regulator had weighed an urgent order as it investigated the images. She also called for changes to the Online Safety Act’s interim business-disruption powers, according to MLex’s account of the hearing.
The court power carries a high threshold
Ofcom can ask a court to impose business-disruption measures in the most serious cases of ongoing non-compliance. Those measures can include requiring internet providers to block access to a service in the UK. The regulator has warned that the power is a significant intervention, subject to a defined process and a high legal bar.
“The law sets a high bar for such applications,” Ofcom said in its February update on the investigation. The regulator also said it was unlikely to seek a block routinely because of the potential effect on freedom of expression. Dawes’s remarks to MPs put that legal constraint in sharper focus: Ofcom considered urgent action, but could not bypass the statutory test simply because the alleged harm demanded speed.
X’s investigation now targets illegal-content duties
Ofcom opened its formal investigation into X on January 12, after contacting the company on January 5 about reports of Grok-generated sexualized images of real people, including children. The inquiry examined whether X had assessed the risks, made reporting suspected illegal content accessible, and handled moderation decisions appropriately. On October 14, Ofcom said it had gathered and analyzed extensive information using its formal powers.
The regulator has since narrowed the remaining inquiry. X made changes that Ofcom said restrict access to pornographic material for accounts that have not completed age checks; Ofcom will continue monitoring those checks while focusing the rest of its investigation on X’s duties concerning illegal content and complaints and reporting. If Ofcom has reasonable grounds to believe X failed to meet its duties, it says the next step is a provisional view that gives the company a full opportunity to respond before a final decision.
Standalone Grok remains a separate regulatory gap
The case involving X is distinct from the standalone Grok service. Ofcom has said the Online Safety Act does not let it investigate the creation of illegal images in a one-to-one chatbot interaction when those images are not shared or surfaced through search. In February, the regulator said it continued to seek answers from xAI, but was not then investigating the company over that image generation.
Following engagement with Ofcom, SpaceXAI—formerly xAI—introduced UK restrictions on the standalone service. The October update says people with UK IP addresses are restricted from viewing, generating or sharing pornographic content through Grok’s image-generation tools; the company also restricted sexually explicit conversations with its companion chatbots. Ofcom says it will monitor those measures and continue discussions about how the Act applies to the service.
MPs heard the case for changing the law
Dawes and Ofcom Chair Sir Ian Cheshire appeared before the House of Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee to discuss the regulator’s work, including online safety and the effect of AI on its enforcement duties. The hearing came as Ofcom’s X investigation moved from broad evidence-gathering toward deciding whether the platform complied with its legal obligations. Its next public milestone, if the regulator finds grounds to proceed, is a provisional view—not an immediate court order.
The key distinction is between Ofcom’s authority to act and the conditions for using its most disruptive powers. The regulator can investigate X’s systems and pursue enforcement under the Online Safety Act, but a UK-wide access block requires a separate court application and a high threshold. For now, the investigation continues under that process while Ofcom monitors the restrictions X and SpaceXAI have introduced.