Canada: Government wants to ban social media for under-16s

Toronto (Canada), 11 June (LaPresse/AP) – Canada has introduced a bill that could prevent children under 16 from having social media accounts, unless tech companies can demonstrate that they can make their platforms safe. “We are letting our children down. We’ve had enough,” said Marc Miller, Canada’s Minister of Culture. ‘We need basic safeguards.’ The legislation covers seven types of harmful content, including material that encourages children to self-harm, incites violence and promotes hatred, and non-consensual intimate images. A new regulatory body, the Canadian Digital Safety Commission, will be established. The criteria for exemptions will be announced at a later date.