Portugal is taking a big step toward child protection from online content. The country’s parliament has approved a new bill that would require parental consent for children aged 13 to 16 before they can access social media platforms.
The proposal passed its first reading this week and is one of the earliest concrete efforts in Europe to place stricter controls on how minors use social media.
The draft law was introduced by lawmakers from the ruling Portugal’s Social Democratic Party, who say the move is aimed at shielding children from cyberbullying, harmful content, and online predators. According to them, kids are being exposed to digital spaces far too early, often without enough guidance or protection.
How the System Will Work
Parents can utilise the Digital Mobile Key (DMK) technology system to access a government-funded application that enables age verification of minors and parental consent from their parents.
The DMK system will aid in the enforcement of existing laws against children under 13 using social networking sites, video-sharing sites, photo-sharing sites, and gambling sites. All technology companies will have to supply age verification methods that support the DMK system.
Fines of 2% of a company’s total worldwide revenue will be assessed for noncompliance with these laws.
How It Started in Portugal?
The Portugal Parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of the measure,e which has been designed to help and protect minors from potential harm online and allow parents more say in terms of how their children use social media.
“We want to protect children without overdoing it,” said PSD lawmaker Paulo Marcelo. “This is about giving families the power to guide and monitor their children’s online lives.”
Other countries have also introduced tougher regulations surrounding social media use due to the increase in concern about how using social media affects the mental health of its youth.
Countries like France have recently passed legislation prohibiting children under the age of 15 from using social media. Australia’s recent implementation of a world-first prohibition on children under the age of 16 using major social media platforms, such as Facebook, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube, highlights the global nature of this issue.
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