UN Recommendations
The UN Human Rights Office has published recommendations to protect children online. The office emphasized the need to regulate the digital environment and make it more transparent; states and tech companies should take more decisive action to ensure children's safety on online platforms.
Problems with modern social media
The internet helps children gain knowledge, communicate, and be creative, but it also creates threats to their safety, privacy, and psychological well-being — which is a result of the conscious actions of platform owners, said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk. Design solutions are aimed at forming dependence: they contain infinite scrolls, autoplay videos, and display intrusive notifications.
Bans and their consequences
Banning social media is not a solution to the problem, because online platforms should be safe by design. Currently, Australia, Indonesia, and Malaysia have banned social media for children; dozens of other countries are considering this measure. But these bans are easily circumvented, resulting in a threat that children will move to even more dangerous shadow platforms.
UN proposals
To address the problems, the UN proposes improving age verification tools, assessing the impact of platforms on children's rights, and involving teenagers in law discussions. It is necessary to develop measures to protect children's personal data and take into account their rights and needs. Tech giants should act more transparently, their actions should be subject to increased control, and mechanisms for legal protection of children are needed.