There is no need to convince anyone about the negative, and in many cases even destructive, impact of social media on the youngest. You can even mention here an internal Facebook report, The study shows that the use of Instagram can lead to low self-esteem, worse mood, and – in some cases – even suicidal thoughts.
In turn, the authors of the report published in December 2022 by the Center for Countering Digital Hate enumerate
Most social media platforms have provisions in the regulations, according to which an account on the website can only be set up by persons over 13 or 15 years of age. The problem is that these types of regulations are usually dead, and the youngest have no problems with circumventing any restrictions and restrictions.
Anyway, it should be made clear that the technological giants are not particularly interested in protecting children from the harmful influence of social media. It is no secret that young users of these platforms are a very attractive group for potential advertisers.
France will ban the youngest from using social media
Because self-regulation is hard to come by, governments have decided to take matters into their own hands. France was the leader in Europe. , which completely bans people under 13 from accessing social networking sites.
According to the adopted regulations, teenagers aged 13 to 15 however, they will have to obtain formal permission from their parents or legal guardians. For these regulations to make any sense, France wants to force platforms to accurately verify the age of users already at the registration stage.
For this purpose, it will be created certified by the French regulatory body Arcom verification toolthat social networking sites will have to use. In the event of violation of the regulations, service owners face penalties not exceeding 1 percent. annual turnover.
We want to try to regulate a world that has no rules
– stresses Laurent Marcangeli, a member of the French National Assembly and the author of the law. The bill still needs to be passed in the Senate for it to come into force.
This is not the end of the actions taken by French lawmakers. The local government also intends to fight the phenomenon “sharenting“, i.e. parents sharing photos of their children on social media.
“The message to parents is that it is their job to protect their children’s privacy,” said Bruno Studer, an MP from President Emmanuel Macron’s party who introduced the bill in late February, in an interview quoted by Politico.
Studer also cited research showing that an image of each child in France is shared online an average of 1,300 times before the child turns 13.
Source: Gazeta
Mabel is a talented author and journalist with a passion for all things technology. As an experienced writer for the 247 News Agency, she has established a reputation for her in-depth reporting and expert analysis on the latest developments in the tech industry.
