New Zealand to pursue social media ban for children under 16
The prime minister of New Zealand said Monday that his party plans to introduce legislation that would bar children under 16 from social media and mandate big fines for companies that do not adhere to the law.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said he was eyeing penalties of up to 10% of a platform’s global revenue for violations.
The legislation would mandate that high-risk social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and Facebook take “reasonable steps” to ensure users are over age 16 by using tools like facial age estimation, digital ID services, formal IDs and existing account information for verification.
The bill also would require that platforms popular with children consistently monitor the risks they pose and report back on how they are identifying and mitigating those risks.
