Feds introduce legislation to restrict social media for minors and create new digital safety commission

OTTAWA — The Liberal government is moving ahead with a plan to require social media companies to restrict access to their sites for those under 16, saying companies will be able to seek exemptions.

The measure is being proposed in a new bill Canadian Heritage Minister Marc Miller tabled Wednesday afternoon, known as the “Safe Social Media Act.”

The legislation revives certain measures advanced under former prime minister Justin Trudeau but which were never passed, including the creation of a new regulator, the Digital Safety Commission of Canada and a new requirement for platforms to submit safety plans.

It also seeks to establish a rule that platforms must remove content that “ sexually victimizes a child” or includes the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, including sexualized deepfakes, within 24 hours of being flagged.

Wednesday’s bill proposes requiring social media platforms to restrict access to users under 16, but would allow companies to seek an exemption if they make changes to improve safety on the sites that are deemed as sufficient by the new regulator.

Deciding which social media platforms would be covered by the ban would be left up to the federal cabinet. Miller told reporters on Wednesday that a social media ban would take effect once the bill becomes law.

The government plans to leave it up to platforms to implement age verification methods. The bill includes an exclusion for “any private messaging feature of the service.”

When it comes to AI chatbots, the government does not plan to institute a ban, but rather require companies implement new measures, such as “crisis intervention protocols,” but not a mandatory reporting requirement to police for threats.

More to come …

National Post

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