With the exponential increase in younger internet users, the security and protection of youth has been the priority of the government, and it continues to implement laws to varying effects.
According to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairwoman Lina Khan, the FTC is seeking to make changes to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), aiming to protect children from having their data harvested and sold by data brokers.
“The updated COPPA rule strengthens key protections for kids’ privacy online,” Khan said. “By requiring parents to opt in to targeted advertising practices, this final rule prohibits platforms and service providers from sharing and monetizing children’s data without active permission. The FTC is using all its tools to keep kids safe online.”
According to The Tennessean writer Angele Latham, there are already 24 states that require users to provide a form of identification, like IDs or facial scans, to “access websites that have 33% or more adult content.”
Latham also says the reforms and laws proposed could extend to other websites that have “adult content,” however, that definition isn’t clear-cut.
“Despite the laws being pushed as a large-scale anti-pornography effort,” Latham said, “popular online platforms that are not considered adult content services, like YouTube and Spotify, have begun locking down and filtering content based on age checks following similar age-verifying laws that passed nationally in the U.K. and Australia.”
The problem with websites like YouTube and Spotify placing restrictions or even requiring facial verification means that content with adult topics, excessive swearing or a myriad of other content with mature themes is being restricted.
The excess of personal data being required to prove one’s age leads to possible ways of being exploited.
As people move to the internet and digital spaces, the information that people use for services could be susceptible to being released in data breaches.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights, there have been a reported 748 data breaches in the past two years.
The possible requirement of facial ID presented to prove one’s age for internet usage, through the use of a driver’s license, passport or one’s own self, creates the opportunity for more information to be exposed in data breaches.
Despite the risk that current reforms may allow more severe data breaches and enable people to circumvent them, some might wonder what constitutes an example of successful child protection services.
In the European Union, the Digital Services Act provides multiple measures similar to those in the U.S.