A new UNICEF analysis shows that social media age restrictions on their own aren’t sufficient to protect children and juveniles effectively. It’s more important to regulate the source of the risks – the platforms themselves.
Political dynamics surrounding social media age restrictions are strongly gaining momentum around the world. By now, around 40 countries are discussing, planning or implementing relevant measures. Switzerland is also talking about such regulations. But an analysis makes it clear that age restrictions on their own aren’t enough to protect children and juveniles effectively. Around one-third of the countries are proposing measures that don’t include comprehensive regulation of platforms. As a result, the primary causes of risk remain in place, such as the amplification of problematic content through algorithms or manipulative functions on the platforms. The core issue is less to do with access than with the way in which these platforms are designed.
Although age restrictions and parental controls are important tools, the protection of children and juveniles must not be left primarily to the youngsters themselves and their parents, but should start with the platforms. Adequate protection of children and juveniles in the digital space must take effect where risks arise. In practice this means that platforms must adjust their algorithms, limit addictive functions, recognize and process problematic content faster, and implement age-appropriate mechanisms by default.
Although measures such as age restrictions can be part of the solution, they don’t automatically make the digital environment safer. Children and juveniles need to be protected where risks arise: on the platforms themselves.
International trends regarding platform regulation present a mixed picture: while most countries are discussing age restrictions of 15 or 16 years, they differ greatly with regard to issues such as parental consent, age verification and the scope of regulation.
Technical implementation also raises key questions. Age verification systems can lead to privacy violations and create new risks if they’re not carefully designed.
The situation is clear for Switzerland: the planned new law on communication platforms (KomPG) provides an opportunity to bindingly strengthen children’s rights in the digital space. However, from the point of view of child protection laws, the current draft law falls too short. It focuses strongly on transparency and the treatment of problematic content, but fails to adequately address the manner in which risks for children arise in the first place from the design, reward structures and functional logic of the platforms. More comprehensive regulation is needed that goes beyond individual measures and consistently focuses on the paramount interests of the child pursuant to Art. 3 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Switzerland now has the opportunity to design a digital space that is aligned with children’s rights. This needs more than just individual measures – what’s needed is a package of measures and clearly defined rules.
Children’s rights apply without limitations, online too. Switzerland is obliged to protect children and juveniles from violence, exploitation and harmful influences – while still allowing them to access the digital space and enjoy its benefits. Effective regulation must consider these goals together. UNICEF Switzerland and Liechtenstein is therefore demanding binding legal guidelines that hold platforms more accountable.
Demands of UNICEF Switzerland & Liechtenstein
- Holistic platform regulation rather than isolated age restrictions: Age restrictions must be part of a comprehensive package of measures. What’s needed is a coherent legal framework that reduces systemic risks, in particular through binding requirements for platform design, management of problematic content and business models, which currently focus on maximum service life.
- Binding risk analysis and effective risk minimization: Platforms must be obliged to systematically analyze and demonstrably reduce the risks for children.
- Safe design of digital services: Digital services must be childproof from the outset: with privacy-friendly default settings, secure algorithms and no manipulative functions such as infinite scrolling or the targeted amplification of problematic content.
- Clear responsibility of platforms – not children or their parents: The providers of digital services have the principal responsibility for the protection of minors. Measures such as parental controls and age verification must not replace this responsibility.
- Consistent implementation of children’s rights and guaranteed participation: Regulation must follow the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Children and juveniles must be involved in the design of preventive measures.
