UK Ban on Specified Pornography Takes Effect

A UK law criminalising possession and publication of specified pornography took effect on November 6, covering depictions of strangulation or suffocation, sexual activity between relatives or people pretending to be related, and adults portraying someone under 16. The Crime and Policing Act 2026 applies to material depicting people who a reasonable person would believe are real, according to the Ministry of Justice. The ministry says the ban covers both publishing and possessing the material. Its clarification of the realism threshold was reported by the ministry and is not a court ruling on how the test will apply in particular cases. The ministry says possession of material depicting strangulation, suffocation or specified sexual activity between relatives carries a maximum sentence of two years. For possession of material depicting someone as under 16, it says the maximum is three years. A separate report says publishing, hosting or sharing prohibited content can carry up to five years in prison. The reports give different maximum terms for publication, and the applicable penalty for that offence is not resolved by the accounts of the law provided here. The law follows...