UK steps up jail threat for tech execs who obstruct regulators

FILE PHOTO: Britain's Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Nadine Dorries arrives at Downing Street, in London, Britain, November 16, 2021. REUTERS/Tom Nicholson

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's government said on Wednesday that executives at social media companies such as Facebook would face up to two years in jail if they provide inaccurate information to regulators' official inquiries.

As part of new legislation being presented to parliament on Thursday, senior managers at tech companies will become "criminally liable for destroying evidence, failing to attend or providing false information in interviews with Ofcom, and for obstructing the regulator when it enters company offices".