Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions his Department has had with internet search providers on preventing unofficial websites from presenting themselves as government service portals and charging inflated fees for services.

The Government Digital Service works with a number of external partners, including internet search providers, to help prevent unofficial websites from presenting themselves as government services and charging inflated fees. This includes identifying and removing misleading or imitation sites.

GDS also cooperates with organisations such as the National Cyber Security Centre and Action Fraud to support wider efforts to tackle online scams and misinformation. Responsibility for taking action against websites that imitate or unfairly charge for specific government services primarily sits with the department that owns the relevant service.