Minor socials ban gets real life - 23rd September 2024

Australia's prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is championing plans to introduce a bill banning children from accessing social media. Due before parliament later this year, the draft legislation reflects concerns that platforms like TikTok and Instagram are negatively impacting children’s well-being.

Albanese argues that young minds ought to be more focused on real life interactions and outdoor activities such as sports. He declared that “parents want their kids off their phones and on the footy field and so do I."

At present, debate’s centred on ascertaining what counts as an appropriate minimum age to access social media. The government’s leaning towards 16, but a lower age of 14 is also being considered, with the final decision only due following reports on trials of age verification systems currently underway.

The use of facial age estimation technology is being considered. Although some have called into question its efficacy in subjects below 16, this is staunchly denied by the technology companies themselves. Another method being explored is verifying an image of a user’s face against one held on an official ID photo.

A double-blind tokenized system using a third party provider is favoured by Australia’s e-safety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant. This would allow proof of age to be verified with age assurance providers and approval shared with social media platforms without the platform accessing a user’s personal data.

Meta, the digital giant behind Facebook and Instagram, is arguing against this responsibility resting on social media platforms. It’s pushing for age verification to be undertaken at the level of devices, with firms like Apple or Google restricting app downloads unless a user’s age has been verified.

Countries including China and France, alongside several US states have made efforts to safeguard children online, implementing legislation aimed at reducing exposure to cyberbullying, self-harming and unachievable, edited beauty images. Australia’s proposal for a blanket ban breaks new ground.

Having just completed a review considering the impacts of a ban, Australia’s former chief justice Robert French acknowledges the challenges of enforcing regulations with companies not headquartered in Australia. These surfaced when Australia’s courts pursued X for disseminating misinformation and breaching online safety regulations.