Across the UK, a disturbing trend is emerging on social media: children are filming themselves provoking animals into screaming or crying “as quickly as possible” and sharing the footage for likes, views, and peer approval. These videos are part of a wider pattern of viral cruelty challenges that reward harm with online attention.

Animal cruelty is a criminal offence — yet these videos are circulating freely, and minors involved are often “let off” because they were “influenced by a trend.” This is not just an animal welfare issue. It is a safeguarding concern, a psychological red flag, and a failure of online safety enforcement.

 
Why this matters now
In 2024, the UK Animal Sentience Committee (ASC) published a report warning that the Online Safety Act did not fully address the risks posed by online animal cruelty content. See the full report here

Their findings highlight a serious loophole:

• Live-streamed animal cruelty must be removed, because it is clearly illegal.
• But pre-recorded cruelty videos are NOT automatically illegal, even when they show deliberate harm.
• Platforms may only be required to remove them if the content explicitly encourages others to commit similar acts.
• The ASC warned that this gap means harmful content can continue circulating, especially when minors are involved.
• They urged the Government to amend legislation to close this loophole — but no changes have yet been made.

This means social media platforms can legally host videos of animal suffering, even when the acts shown would be criminal if committed offline.

Since then, animal cruelty has been recognised as a priority harm under the Online Safety Act, and Ofcom has published guidance explaining how regulated platforms should identify, assess and address animal abuse content.

However, in a recent response to my MP (dated 8th October 2026), the Government confirmed that:

"The legal position has not changed since publication of the ASC's report."

The Government also confirmed that:

"The Act does not create a specific offence of recording or publishing footage of past animal cruelty."

This means that while platforms must remove illegal animal cruelty content and mitigate risks to children, pre-recorded animal cruelty footage is not automatically illegal solely because it depicts animal suffering. Whether such content falls within the Act's illegal content duties depends on the individual circumstances of each case.

Although Ofcom's guidance may capture some of this material through existing offences and platform duties, questions remain about whether the concerns identified by the ASC have been fully addressed.

This petition seeks greater transparency, accountability, and protection to ensure that harmful animal cruelty content cannot be used to normalise, encourage or spread abuse online.

What we are calling for

We call on social media platforms operating in the UK to:
1 . Remove all content depicting deliberate harm or distress caused to animals, including viral “challenge” trends — not just live-streamed cruelty.

2. Automatically report accounts posting such content to the RSPCA and relevant authorities, especially when minors are involved.

3. Strengthen detection systems to identify emerging cruelty trends before they spread.

4. Collaborate with UK safeguarding bodies to educate young users and parents about the seriousness of animal harm and the risks of online challenge culture.

We call on the UK Government to:
5. Fully address the concerns identified by the Animal Sentience Committee regarding pre-recorded animal cruelty content and online dissemination of animal suffering.

6. Review how animal cruelty committed by minors is handled, ensuring Youth Offending Teams and safeguarding professionals are consistently involved.

7. Publish clear evidence that the current framework is effectively identifying, removing and reducing harmful animal cruelty content online, and introduce further legislative reform if existing measures prove insufficient.
 

Why this matters to all of us
Animals deserve protection.

Children deserve safeguarding.

Communities deserve better than cruelty being normalised as entertainment.

By signing this petition, you are calling for urgent action to stop the spread of animal cruelty online and to ensure that both animals and young people are protected from the harms of viral challenge culture.

Together, we can push for the changes the Animal Sentience Committee has already warned are urgently needed — and make sure this issue is no longer ignored.

This petition recognises that Ofcom has published guidance and that the Government has acknowledged the issue. However, the Government has also confirmed that the legal position remains unchanged since publication of the Animal Sentience Committee's report. We therefore seek reassurance, transparency and, where necessary, further action to ensure that harmful animal cruelty content cannot continue to spread online or influence real-world behaviour.