New Zealand to introduce bill banning social media for children under 16
As Channel NewsAsia reports, citing Reuters, New Zealand’s conservative coalition government plans to introduce to parliament on August 24 a bill banning the use of social media by children under the age of 16. The document also provides for fines for platforms of up to 10% of their global turnover for non-compliance.
User age verification
The bill will require social media companies to take reasonable measures to verify users’ ages. For this purpose, platforms may use available account information, facial recognition technologies, and digital identity documents.
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Prime minister’s statement
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said that the authorities cannot accept the harm being suffered by a generation of New Zealand children. According to him, social media exposes children to harmful content, addictive technologies, and pressure they are not prepared for.
Luxon also noted that this affects children’s family life, mental health, sleep, and education.
