A claim on X said that UK regulator Ofcom was fining Meta £450,000. Ofcom has since confirmed that it imposed no such penalty on the parent company of Facebook and Instagram.
The figure is real, but it applies to someone else. It comes from a separate enforcement action against 4chan, the anonymous message board, which was fined £520,000. Of that amount, £450,000 was related to child protection issues.
Meta is still facing a dispute with Ofcom, however. The two sides are locked in a High Court fight over how the regulator calculates fees under the Online Safety Act 2023. Ofcom has also opened investigations into a new Instagram feature. The fine claim was mistaken; the friction is not.
Where the £450,000 figure came from
The confusion stems from the 4chan case. Ofcom fined the platform £520,000 for several violations, with the largest portion related to child protection failures.
That £520,000 fine is the largest penalty Ofcom has publicly detailed so far. Since October 2025, Ofcom has issued fines totaling over £7 million against 11 providers.
Under the Online Safety Act, the maximum fine is whichever is greater: 10% of a company’s qualifying worldwide revenue or £18 million. For a company the size of Meta, the percentage-based limit is the relevant one. A sum such as £450,000 would barely register against that ceiling.
Meta’s real dispute with Ofcom
The dispute that really matters concerns a different kind of money. Meta has brought a High Court challenge to Ofcom’s approach to assessing fees and penalties under the Online Safety Act.
The central question is which revenue base to use. Ofcom’s method calculates fees using global revenue rather than earnings generated in the UK. Meta argues that this approach is disproportionate and possibly unlawful.
Meta’s challenge specifically contests the use of global revenue to calculate fees for companies operating multiple services. Meta fits that category, running Facebook, Instagram and other platforms under one corporate roof.
The High Court hearing took place on October 13-14, 2026. A judgment is expected in late October 2026. The ruling could reshape the framework within which UK online safety regulators operate.
The Instagram Instants investigations
Separately, Ofcom has opened investigations into Meta concerning the launch of Instagram Instants, a feature introduced in May 2026.
The Online Safety Act requires platforms to conduct risk assessments before introducing new features. Ofcom’s investigations will examine whether Meta fulfilled that requirement for Instants.
Why the dispute over the methodology matters more than any individual fine
For Meta and its shareholders, the High Court case is where the stakes lie. If the court supports Ofcom and upholds its use of global revenue, international companies operating in the UK could face significantly higher liabilities.
A ruling in Meta’s favor could limit the financial base Ofcom uses to calculate fees and potentially influence how penalties are assessed, making the UK regime less costly for global platforms.
The next milestone is the High Court judgment expected in late October 2026. After that, the focus will turn to Ofcom’s conclusions on Instagram Instants.
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