Social media bans for kids won’t replace platform safety — United Nations

The United Nations human rights office has cautioned that blocking children from social media platforms is an insufficient measure to ensure their safety online. The agency unveiled a comprehensive 10-point framework on Friday, calling for concerted action from governments and technology companies to bolster protections for minors in digital spaces.

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Online harms to kids’ safety, privacy and wellbeing result from design choices and business practices that undermine safety, including addictive design features such as infinite scroll, autoplay, and persistent notifications.

The guidelines, titled "Getting Children’s Safety Online Right," were released amidst a global trend of expanding age-based social media restrictions. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stated that the risks children encounter online stem from corporate design choices and business practices, rather than being inherent to digital life. He cited addictive features like infinite scroll, autoplay, and persistent notifications as contributing factors to online harms.

According to the UN human rights office, the framework urges governments and tech firms to accelerate efforts to safeguard children. While countries like Australia, Indonesia, and Malaysia have implemented age-based bans, Türk warned that such measures alone do not address the root problems and can be easily circumvented, potentially pushing children toward riskier online environments.

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Simply limiting access to platforms that remain unsafe cannot stand as the endpoint.

Peggy Hicks, Director of Thematic Engagement and Special Procedures at the OHCHR, stressed that technology companies must fundamentally change their platform designs and operations to protect children's rights. She indicated that failure to do so could lead to more stringent legislation and regulatory penalties. The guidelines advocate for embedding safety measures into platform design from the outset, emphasizing mandatory child rights impact assessments, secure age-verification systems, and meaningful consultation with children during policy development.

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Change how their platforms are designed and operated to better protect children’s rights and safety – or be forced to do so through increasingly restrictive legislation and regulatory fines.