A consultation held by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) along with a social impact consultancy, has said that a blanket ban on social media for children will not be effective, people aware of the details said on Thursday.
MeitY, along with social impact consultancy Space2Grow, and civil society organisations met to discuss the issue of online child safety. The consultation was headed by MeitY secretary S Krishnan.
It was deliberated whether a new chapter in the Information Technology Act, an altogether separate law or guidelines by the country’s apex child rights body National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) should be developed, according to people at the consultation on Thursday.
HT has learnt that NCPCR is currently in the process of creating a social media code of conduct for social media platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, X and Snapchat, to strengthen safeguards for children online.
Also Read:Compliance, content moderation in focus as govt, Meta hold talks after PM Modi reel row
The code is being prepared in consultation with MeitY, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), social media companies and civil society organisations.
{{/usCountry}}The code is being prepared in consultation with MeitY, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), social media companies and civil society organisations.
{{/usCountry}}Officials that HT spoke to said that while the code itself will function as a set of guidelines, NCPCR could invoke its statutory powers under the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, and recommend prosecution to the appropriate authorities if it finds violations of children’s rights under existing laws.
For the consultation, civil society organisations and technology policy think tanks were called to a closed-door roundtable to discuss online child safety, age-gating and platform regulation at the ministry’s office in New Delhi. The consultation was originally scheduled for July 27, but was postponed until August 20 due to the monsoon session of Parliament.
During the discussions, several organisations advocated a “safety by design” principle for social media platforms, with the government subsequently monitoring compliance against a framework that would have legal force. Presentations by the organisations highlighted that the concerns extend beyond social media to AI chatbots and gaming platforms too, which may also expose children to age-inappropriate content or other online harms. The organisations also shared data on the use and effectiveness of parental controls.
Organisations also pitched the need for the country to conduct its own longitudinal research on children’s internet use and the harms they face online, a proposal that was agreed to by MeitY Secretary S Krishnan, according to people at the consultation.
It was discussed that many countries around the world have already done such a study and that India too needs to do it.
HT had reported on July 21 that MeitY is looking to conduct a study to assess the harms children face on social media and understand the current landscape before deciding whether any intervention is necessary on the regulation front, a government official said at the time.
It was also discussed that consultations should be held directly with children, who, participants said, should be viewed as rights-bearers rather than merely as victims. Civil society organisations also proposed imposing a legally enforceable “duty of care” on platforms.
The consultation, which lasted for two hours, had attendees including NCPCR, Centre for Social Research, Counsel to Secure Justice, Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL), Enfold, Responsible Netism, The Quantum Hub, Just Rights, and Internet Freedom Foundation.
From MeitY, apart from the secretary, Cyber Laws Division Group Coordinator Deepak Goel and scientist E Dr S Sathyanarayanan also attended the meeting.