New laws will force internet search engines to cut access to harmful websites, wherever they are in the world.

The Online Safety Act will be granted territorial reach to remove links to content that’s hosted overseas.

Investigators have previously had trouble getting “an absolute tsunami” of content like child exploitation material and pro-terrorist content pulled down, eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant explained.

She told Joe Hildebrand search engines often claim they “don’t decide what’s on the internet”, but simply “hold up a mirror to society”.

“This Online Safety Act … gives us that extra territorial reach.

“It recognises that the online ecosystem is very complex, with a range of chokepoints and a range of players.

“If we’re not successful getting a host to take down content, … we go up to the hosting sites, we go up to the app stores to deplatform apps, … or we go to the search engines.”

Press PLAY below to hear what content eSafety is targeting 

Image: Nine News