The media watchdog said it contacted the social media platform on Monday last week and set a firm deadline of last Friday to "explain what steps it has taken to comply with its duties to protect its users in the UK".

The company replied by the deadline, and Ofcom has since carried out an "expedited assessment of available evidence as a matter of urgency".

It added the formal investigation will look into whether X, owned by tech titan Elon Musk, has "failed to comply with its legal obligations under the Online Safety Act".

The regulator said: "There have been deeply concerning reports of the Grok AI chatbot account on X being used to create and share undressed images of people - which may amount to intimate image abuse or pornography - and sexualised images of children that may amount to child sexual abuse material."

The investigation has been welcomed by Technology Secretary Liz Kendall, who will give further detail on the government's response in the Commons later on Monday.

Ms Kendall said: "It is vital that Ofcom complete this investigation swiftly because the public - and most importantly the victims - will not accept any delay.

"The content created and shared using Grok in recent days has been deeply disturbing."

Downing Street suggested the government was open to ending its use of X if the platform did not act on concerns about its AI chatbot, adding that "all options are on the table".

Asked whether the government would leave X, the prime minister's official spokesman said: "Our focus today and over the last week has been fully on protecting children and ensuring this vile content is taken down immediately."

Read more from Sky News:
Trump wants a deal but insists US will acquire Greenland
All of the winners from the Golden Globes

The use of Grok to create sexually explicit content has sparked a wave of concern among ministers who have expressed support for a UK ban if Ofcom decides to block access to the platform.

But Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said she believed banning X was the "wrong answer".

Speaking before the investigation was launched, she said: "I'm not even sure what question it is that they're answering.

"What we are seeing is a Labour government that did not have a plan, and they're just throwing out random policies, probably to distract from the fact that they're putting businesses in a very difficult position."

Trade Secretary Peter Kyle, who previously served as technology secretary, defended the UK's Online Safety Act but said there was "more work to do" to protect people online, "particularly in places like X".

"Let me be really clear about X - X is not doing enough to keep its customers safe online," he told Sky News.

Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy said US vice president JD Vance was sympathetic to efforts to tackle the Grok-produced images, although Donald Trump's free speech tsar Sarah Rogers later likened the UK's threats to Vladimir Putin's Russia.

Mr Lammy, who met Mr Vance in the US on Thursday, told The Guardian he raised the issue of Grok "and the horrendous, horrific situation in which this new technology is allowing deepfakes and the manipulation of images of women and children, which is just absolutely abhorrent".

"He agreed with me that it was entirely unacceptable," Mr Lammy said.

In response to ministers' threats, Mr Musk has accused the UK government of being "fascist" and trying to curb free speech.

Responding to a post on X claiming the UK arrests more people for social media posts than "any other country on earth", Mr Musk wrote: "Real fascism is arresting thousands of people for social media posts."

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said he feared the government would end up "suppressing free speech".

Speaking at a news conference in central London on Monday, he said: "Nothing from the current set of regulators in government would surprise me when it comes to the suppression of free speech.

"Do we like and welcome the particular feature on Grok that has made the news over the weekend? No.

"But let's talk to Grok. They have already made one or two steps in our direction. My fear is we will end up suppressing Grok and further suppressing free speech and we do not want to do that."

Sky News has contacted X for comment.

Both Southern Water and South East Water (SEW) - which supply parts of Kent, Surrey and Sussex - said cold weather brought by Storm Goretti and a power cut at pumping plants were to blame for the outages.

Linden Kemkaran, leader of KCC, declared a major incident across the county on Monday morning, saying more households have been impacted in the last 24 hours.

"We are putting additional arrangements in place to prepare for further potential disruption," she said in a statement on X.

The issue has forced a number of schools in Kent and Sussex to close on the first day of the week.

It comes after 24,000 properties in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, spent days without any running water, and almost two weeks without drinkable water last month.

Here is what you need to know.

Where is affected?

Currently, roughly 30,000 properties across the two counties are impacted, South East Water said in a statement to Sky News.

"This includes 16,500 properties in East Grinstead and the surrounding areas in Sussex, with parts of Tunbridge Wells also affected, along with some localised issues in other parts of Kent," the company said.

At the time of writing 11 postcodes across four areas are still experiencing little to no water supply, according to the SEW website. These include:

• Maidstone
• West Sussex and surrounding areas
• Tunbridge Wells
• Canterbury
• Whitstable

SEW said supplies to East Grinstead, West Sussex, and Blean, Maidstone, are not expected to return until Tuesday.

Southern Water said on 11 January that households in Thanet, Sittingbourne, Medway and surrounding areas are currently not experiencing a loss of water supply, but some drinking water storage reservoirs are at low levels due to Storm Goretti.

The company said this could mean there is a "higher risk of supply issues in the coming days" but it is "taking action now to do all we can to prevent that".

What caused the problem?

SEW said Storm Goretti, which hit the UK last week, affected its ability to "treat the raw water at the normal rate at our main Sussex water treatment works".

It said this, coupled with the outbreak of burst water mains due to freezing conditions across Sussex, means its drinking water storage levels are running low.

SEW incident manager Mike Court said: "We're sorry to our customers across Kent and Sussex who are experiencing issues with their drinking water supply, including no water, intermittent supply interruptions or low pressure."

He said water treatment works continue to operate at full capacity and tankers are "pumping water directly into the storage tanks and network to increase the amount of water available in the affected areas".

Repair teams are also working "around the clock" to fix leaks and bursts, Mr Court said.

Read more from Sky News:
Victims of Bolton crash named
Ofcom investigating X

'Extremely frustrating'

Dave and Valerie Matson have lived in and around Tunbridge Wells for 55 years. They told Sky News that the current water outages are "extremely frustrating".

"I know it's jolly cold, but this should not happen," Mrs Matson said.

Mr Matson, a former director of a company, said it has only been a short while since residents in Tunbridge Wells were last affected by water outages.

"It destroyed Tunbridge Wells in the run-up to Christmas," he said.

"Literally all the shops were shut... and the restaurants, normally they are rammed in December, but they have lost thousands and thousands. I think it is absolutely appalling."

Mr Matson put the problems down to "greed and incompetence" of water companies, adding: "They have got a duty to their customers, they have got to talk to their shareholders and say 'we have got to spend money, we have got to do what we should have done over the years'."

He added: "We can cope with it, but I feel so sorry for the vulnerable people and businesses. It is hard enough for shops in this county and across the UK."

Where are bottled water stations located?

Multiple bottled water stations have been set up in the area to distribute water to local residents until supplies are fully restored.

SEW said its customer care team is also delivering bottled water to the customers on our Priority Services Register who are most in need and we have carried out 5,700 deliveries of bottled water over the weekend.

The company said the following stations are open until 10pm:

• Kings Centre - Moat Rd, East Grinstead RH19 3LN

• East Grinstead Sports Club - Saint Hill Rd, East Grinstead RH19 4JU

• East Court, College Lane, East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 3LT

• Tunbridge St Marks Recreation Ground, Tunbridge Wells TN2 5LS

Recurring problems at South East Water

In 2023, SEW was found to be the worst company for supply interruptions in the UK. Since then there have been multiple high-profile outages.

The last was in December 2025, when 24,000 people suffered days without water in Tunbridge Wells after a "water quality issue" at the Pembury Water Treatment Works.

Earlier this month, chief executive of SEW David Hinton was criticised by MPs for a "fundamentally lacking" human response to the crisis during an Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee hearing.

One committee member said they were "quite shocked" at the "lack of accountability" the chief executive was taking for the incident, although he did begin his questioning with an apology to customers.

He blamed a lack of infrastructure in the South East for the failures and said that the risks are "inevitable" without investment.

Thomas Craig, 48, struck a passenger twice over the head before stabbing another with the smashed neck of the Buckfast bottle during the incident on 16 February 2024.

Craig, of East Renfrewshire, was found guilty of assaulting one man to the danger of his life and the attempted murder of a second man at the High Court in Glasgow in November.

At the same court on Monday, he was handed a 15-year extended sentence, with 12 years in jail and three years on licence once released back into the community.

Judge Lord Arthurson said: "On a busy train you launched an appallingly violent attack on two men who were complete strangers to you.

"Members of the public have every right to be able to travel on public transport safely and without fear."

The drunken attack occurred on a Glasgow to Perth service.

The court heard how an intoxicated Craig began speaking to other passengers on the train who were sat across the aisle from him.

Within 10 minutes he hurled an insult at his first victim, before suddenly jumping from his seat and striking him twice over the head with the bottle.

The man fled through the train, but Craig chased him and continued to strike him with the bottle until it smashed, leaving him holding its jagged broken neck.

Lord Arthurson said: "You ran towards your first victim striking him on the neck with the bottle.

"The second man courageously came to the assistance of his friend."

Craig punched his second victim multiple times before he twice thrusted the broken neck of the glass bottle into his chest.

The man's injuries, which included a stab wound close to his heart, a collapsed lung, and a severed artery that resulted in him losing around 15% of his blood, left him in intensive care.

Lord Arthurson described the assault on the second man as "a wholly murderous attack".

Both victims were said to be in their early 20s at the time of the incident.

Following the attack, Craig returned to his seat and threw the neck of the bottle towards where the victims had been sitting.

He grabbed one of the victim's phones and pocketed it, before walking down the train and removing his blood-soaked jumper, replacing it with a clean hoodie from his belongings.

Police and paramedics met the train at Larbert railway station where Craig was arrested and both victims were treated for their injuries before being urgently taken to hospital.

Lord Arthurson praised other passengers who came to the aid of the victims, including a nurse who helped on board.

Read more from Sky News:
Ofcom investigating X
Two men charged over '£24m cannabis seizure'

The court heard that Craig had been drinking alcohol for several hours and had also taken cocaine before the attack.

Tony Graham KC, representing the defendant, said there was nothing he could say in mitigation but described his client as a man who has struggled with drug and alcohol addiction and feels remorse over the incident.

The lawyer said: "He understands the damage he has done, he understands the suffering he has caused and he understands that those short moments on that train will live with and probably haunt forever his victims."

He added: "This is a man who recognises he has done wrong. This is a man who recognises the potentially devastating consequences, averted in this case."

Detective Inspector Marc Francey, of the British Transport Police, said: "I am extremely pleased with the result the court has handed down today - Craig acted with mindless aggression that day, attacking his two victims over a minor disagreement.

"His indiscriminate and thuggish actions could have resulted in far more severe consequences, and he will now face the consequences and spend the next 12 years behind bars.

"It is thanks only to luck and to the lifesaving work of the paramedics that Craig hasn't been found guilty of something far worse.

"I hope this sentence brings a measure of closure to the victims and their families after such a brutal attack."

The four people who died in the crash involving a taxi and a car have been named as Masrob Ali, 54, who is believed to be the taxi driver, Mohammed Jibrael Mukhtar, 18, Farhan Patel, 18, and Mohammed Danyaal, 19.

Five passengers from both cars - a Seat Leon and a Citroen C4 Picasso - remain in hospital.

Greater Manchester Police said: "In the Citroen, a 29-year-old woman suffered potentially life-threatening injuries. A 28-year-old woman and a 30-year-old man suffered serious injuries and a 29-year-old man has minor injuries.

"An 18-year-old man, who was a passenger in the Seat, remains in hospital for treatment on minor injuries."

Detective Inspector Andrew Page said: "We are still in the early stages of our investigation and work is ongoing to establish the full circumstances of this terrible incident.

"As an investigation team we would encourage people to be mindful of sharing footage on social media given the impact this will have on all the families involved in such a tragic incident."

Read more from Sky News:
Man jailed for violent bottle attack on passengers
Two men charged after two tonnes of cannabis seized

Footage from a nearby property shared online showed a head-on crash, before both cars and debris were sent flying in different directions.

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said emergency teams responded to the crash on Wigan Road in Bolton at around 12.50am.

"Firefighters arrived quickly to make the area safe and used cutting equipment to help remove people from the vehicles before passing them into the care of North West Ambulance Service," they said.

"Greater Manchester Police assisted with cordoning the area. Crews were in attendance for roughly two hours."

A local resident said she was woken by a loud crash and later saw a large amount of debris scattered across the road, along with a red car that had been badly damaged.

Councillor Ayyub Patel, of Bolton Council, told Sky News the "incredibly tragic incident" had left the whole community "devastated".

David Gowans, 32, launched the projectile following a league match between Aberdeen and Dundee United at Tannadice on 17 May 2025.

It struck then Aberdeen player Jack MacKenzie in the face, leaving him with a "deep 2in laceration" to his left eyebrow and a "5cm abrasion" below his left eye.

The incident occurred as fans invaded the pitch following Dundee United's 2-1 win - which secured them fourth spot in the Scottish Premiership and a place in Europe.

Father-of-one Gowans, who was said to have been working as an offshore operator at the time, had been a member of the Aberdeen ultras supporters' group.

Sheriff Alastair Carmichael told him: "Your actions were selfish, stupid, dangerous and utterly irresponsible.

"You must have known that by throwing this item it could hit somebody. If you didn't consider this possibility, the level of recklessness is staggering."

MacKenzie, who now plays for Plymouth Argyle, was struck after he had gone to the area of the pitch in front of the travelling Aberdeen FC fans to thank them for their support.

Sheriff Carmichael was shown CCTV footage of the incident, which showed MacKenzie lying on the pitch receiving medical attention. He was later taken off the pitch in a wheelchair.

Gowans pleaded guilty to culpable and reckless conduct at Dundee Sheriff Court in November.

He was sentenced on Monday. As well as the jail term, Gowans was additionally banned from attending football matches for 10 years.

He has already been handed a lifetime ban by Aberdeen FC.

Sheriff Carmichael said: "There is no reasonable alternative to a custodial sentence.

"This is needed because of the gravity of this crime, and it is needed in order to adequately punish you and adequately express the public disapproval of this behaviour, and discourage others from behaving in a similar fashion."

Prosecutor Lee Corr previously told the court that on the day of the incident Gowans sent text messages to Lynn Fiske, Aberdeen FC's supporter liaison officer, in which he initially denied but later admitted throwing the seat.

In one message, the father-of-one said he "wasn't aiming at anything or anyone" and that the section of seat had just been "there right next to me".

He described it as "a disastrous mistake".

Ms Fiske advised him to turn himself into the police, but Gowans did not and was arrested and charged a couple of days later.

During a police interview, Gowans admitted drinking a half litre of vodka prior to leaving home for the match.

Defence lawyer Larry Flynn told the court his client had been inebriated at the time he threw the chair, and that he was so drunk he missed the supporters' bus home to Aberdeen and had to get a taxi instead.

He added that Gowans was "extremely embarrassed" by the incident, and that he accepts "he let himself down and let his football club down".

Helen Nisbet, procurator fiscal for Tayside, Central and Fife, said: "This was disgraceful conduct which could have resulted in far greater consequences.

"David Gowans' crass behaviour could also have jeopardised the safety of other supporters.

"As prosecutors, we will not hesitate to deal with this type of offending which puts people at serious risk of harm."