Imgur has removed access to its platform for all users in the UK following an investigation by the Information Commissioner’s Office resulting in a proposed fine on the platform.

The image platform is used by millions, mainly for the creation of memes, with its images shared across the internet and social media platforms.

UK users trying to access the site, however, encountered an error message, notifying them that “content not available in your region.” Imgur content that has been shared on other platforms is also not being shown as part of the company’s UK exit.

Its parent company, MediaLab AI, was facing a fine from the ICO following an investigation into its age checks and use of children’s data.

Imgur’s help website, which cannot be accessed via UK IPs, says that “UK users will not be able to log in, view content, or upload images. Imgur content embedded on third-party sites will not display for UK users.”

The ICO investigation began in March, probing if Imgur was compliant with the UK data protection laws and the children’s code.

Prior to the investigation launch, the ICO said that it found that Imgur was not asking users to confirm their age when creating an account.

ICO concluded its investigation in Tuesday, and gave MediaLab a notice on 10 September that it intended to impose a fine.

The ICO described Imgur’s block in the UK was a ‘commercial decision’.

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“Our findings are provisional and the ICO will carefully consider any representations from MediaLab before taking a final decision whether to issue a monetary penalty,” Tim Capel, the interim executive director of the ICO, said.

“We have been clear that exiting the UK does not allow an organisation to avoid responsibility for any prior infringement of data protection law, and our investigation remains ongoing.

“This update has been provided to give clarity on our investigation, and we will not be providing any further detail at this time.

“Safeguarding children’s personal information is a key priority for the ICO and our Children’s code strategy outlines our key interventions in this area. Keeping children safe online is the responsibility of the companies offering online services to them and we will continue to hold them to account.”

UK users are able to exercise their data protection rights with Imgur and can request a copy of their data from the company or have their account deleted.