Australia will be the first country where minors’ access to social networks will be limited at the legislative level. However, platforms will not be required to directly verify users’ age. Instead, they are encouraged to use artificial intelligence and behavioral algorithms to determine whether a person has reached the required age.
Google representatives emphasized that the law, despite good intentions, could lead to unintended consequences and fail to achieve its purpose. In their opinion, restricting access does not solve the problem and it would be more effective to provide parents with more tools to control and protect children online.
The inclusion of YouTube in the list of platforms covered by the law attracted particular attention. It was previously planned to remove the service from the list, considering it to be an educational platform, but the decision was revised following complaints from other companies. Google continues to insist that YouTube is a video hosting service, not a social network.
Source: Ferra
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