Online Reporter
BRUSSELS. — There is High Court drama in Australia, Malaysia has just announced that this is the last month when its kids will be allowed access to social media and pressure is mounting just about everywhere.
From 10 December, social media firms – including Meta, TikTok and YouTube — must ensure that young Australians cannot hold accounts on their platforms.
Campaigners and the government say the law is necessary to protect children from harmful content and algorithms that can promote it to users.
But the policy is being challenged in the nation’s highest court by two 15-year-olds, backed by a rights group, who say it robs them of their right to free communication.
One of them, Noah Jones, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme there were bad things online but that did not mean banning under-16s was the right answer.
“We shouldn’t be using the resources and money of these social media platforms to try to avoid fines from our government,” he said.
“They should be using this money and resources to try to get rid of the predators and harmful content out there.”
Macy Newland, who is bringing the challenge alongside Noah, admitted that she believed there were problems with social media, gaming and screen time in general.
Malaysia plans to ban social media for users under the age of 16 starting from next year, joining a growing list of countries choosing to limit access to digital platforms due to concerns about child safety.
Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said on Sunday the government was reviewing mechanisms used to impose age restrictions for social media use in Australia and other nations, citing a need to protect youths from online harms such as cyberbullying, financial scams and child sexual abuse.
“We hope by next year that social media platforms will comply with the government’s decision to bar those under the age of 16 from opening user accounts,” he told reporters, according to a video of his remarks posted online by local daily The Star.
The effects of social media on children’s health and safety have become a growing global concern, with companies including TikTok, Snapchat, Google and Meta Platforms — the operator of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp —facing lawsuits in the United States for their role in driving a mental health crisis.
France, Spain, Italy, Denmark and Greece are also jointly testing a template for an age verification app.
Malaysia’s neighbour Indonesia said in January it planned to set a minimum age for social media users, but later issued a less stringent regulation requiring tech platforms to filter negative content and impose stronger age verification measures.
Last week, the European Parliament adopted a proposal calling to ban social media for teenagers under the age of 16 as lawmakers ponder its negative impact on mental health and the politics of online debate.
The report was approved by a large majority of 483 votes in favour, 92 against and 86 abstentions in a non-binding vote held in Strasbourg.
The proposal suggests children and teens under the age of 16 should not have access to social media, video-sharing platforms and AI chat bots.
The move comes just a week after French President Emmanuel Macron lambasted US big tech and Chinese algorithms — in a reference to TikTok, without naming it—for creating a culture of harassment, bullying and extremism.
Macron said these platforms do not contribute to freedom of speech but instead foster a “Wild West” environment with little oversight.
Defenders of social media as a platform for “radical free speech” such as Elon Musk, owner of Tesla and X, argue European authorities are trying to silence alternative voices through regulation. Earlier this week, US official visited Brussels and urged the Commission to revisit its implementation of digital rules in exchange for better trading terms with the US.
The EU has so far rejected changing its landmark regulatory framework under the Digital Markets Act and the Digital Services Act calling it a matter of sovereignty.
Macron has called more measures “to create a digital sovereignty that protects our children, our teenagers and our democratic space.”
The President of the Commission, Germany’s Ursula von der Leyen, has echoed the same.
In the report, MEPs said research shows that one in four minors now displays “problematic” smartphone use comparable to addiction. Lawmakers warned that manipulative designs, such as infinite scrolling, or doom scrolling. It also said auto play videos and personalised recommendation algorithms are undermining children’s wellbeing, concentration and sleep. —BBC/Al Jazeera/EuroNews
