The UK media regulator will punish social media companies of they don't make significant changes to battle the issue of children pretending to be adults on their platforms.

According to a new survey by the organisation, 22 percent of eight to 17 year olds lie about their age on social media apps and say they're 18 or over.

Speaking to the BBC, Ian Mccrae - Ofcom's director of market intelligence - said: "Platforms need to do much, much more to know the age of their children online."

He insisted there should be a "real step change in online safety" in 2025, and firms who don't comply with regulations will face "action".

The Online Safety Act allows for companies to be fined 10 percent of their global revenue.

As it stands, a number of major platforms allow users to set up an account with a new email address without requiring any proof of age.

But Mccrae added: "Self-declaration of a child's age is clearly completely insufficient."

Teenagers at Glasgow's Roshall Academy told BBC News how "easy" it is for them to "lie about [their] age".

While Snapchat and Meta declined to respond to the BBC's request, TikTok noted they are looking into how "machine learning technology" can help battle the issue.

A spokesperson said: "Every day we remove thousands of suspected underage accounts.

"We're exploring how new machine learning technology can enhance these efforts and co-leading an initiative to develop industry-wide age assurance approaches that prioritise safety and respect young people's rights."