Canada proposes ban on social networks for children under 16

In Canada, a bill has been proposed providing for restricting access to social networks for users under 16 years of age.

As Canadian press reports, unlike the Australian model, the mechanism proposed in Canada contains a clause allowing technology companies to bypass the ban. Such an opportunity will be provided if the platforms can prove the existence and effective application of an internal policy aimed at reducing potential harm to children and adolescents.

The bill covers not only social networks but also a wider range of digital services. In particular, the document includes provisions regulating the use of chatbots based on artificial intelligence technologies, as well as measures to limit the spread of harmful content on the internet. To monitor compliance with the new requirements, it is proposed to create a separate supervisory body that will monitor the activities of technology companies and ensure compliance with the established norms.

Discussion of the bill is taking place against the backdrop of growing public pressure from parents and human rights advocates who are demanding stronger measures to protect children in the digital environment.

The presentation of the bill took place on the eve of the Group of Seven summit, which will be held in France next week. It is expected that one of the key topics at the meeting of world leaders will be issues of regulating artificial intelligence and strengthening the protection of minors from potential risks on the internet.

The initiator of the document was Canadian Minister of Culture Mark Miller, who introduced the bill on the safe use of social networks in the House of Commons. He previously stated that the adoption of such measures is a priority of state policy, emphasizing the need to respond to the growth of threats in the digital environment.

Similar legislative approaches have already been implemented or are under discussion in a number of countries, including the United Kingdom, France, and New Zealand, indicating the formation of a stable international trend toward strengthening control over the use of social networks by minors and regulating the digital environment as a whole.

Source: BBC