The HC children's social media ban debate has gained fresh attention after the Delhi High Court left the decision on restricting children's access to social media with the government, raising wider questions about online safety, age verification, privacy and parental responsibility.

The HC children’s social media ban debate is heating up once again after the Delhi High Court ruled that the decision to restrict or prohibit children from using social media is a policy issue. The court dismissed the PIL seeking to impose restrictions on children’s access to social media sites while also calling for measures to combat child sexual assault material.

Delhi HC Declares It Is a Policy Decision

The PIL was filed by Kirti Dua, a mother of a three year old child and paediatrician Dr. Sharad Gupta. They argued that children need to be protected from exposure to harmful and explicit material on social media.

The bench of Justice V Kameswar Rao and Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora refused to impose a social media ban but directed the government to look into the matter and consider the recommendations of experts and social media companies.

“The court made it clear that it does not lie within its jurisdiction to direct or advise any social media company to restrict or prohibit something. This issue is in the realm of a policy, not for a court to give a direction that you should ban this or you should ban that,” said the judgment.

That leaves the ball in the government’s court to decide the next course of action. One of the key questions, however, remains; what restrictions, if any, should be imposed?

Children’s Social Media Use: A Ban Is Not So Simple

An important point to note is that any form of social media ban would require a robust system to ensure that the users are adults. But how exactly can a company verify the age of a user? Can the user themselves choose their age? Are they going to use their parents’ account or phone to access the application?

A social media ban could be complicated because there are a number of privacy implications as well. A verification system has to be designed that would enable the company to ensure that the person accessing their services is indeed an adult.

But Who Watches the Watchman?

Imposing a social media ban would not take away the responsibility of parents. They still have to deal with teaching their children about what they can and cannot do on the Internet. A parent or teacher would still have to explain to a child why they should not share certain information online or communicate with someone they do not know in real life.

“The responsibility does not begin with the government. It begins with society itself”. These words by one of the participants in a panel discussion on children’s access to social media sites encapsulate the reason why the ban debate goes far beyond whether or not children are allowed to use Instagram or YouTube.

Shouldn’t Social Media Platforms’ Design Be Regulated Instead?

Another approach to tackle this issue would be to regulate the design of these platforms instead of outright banning them. While the social media companies have their own children’s safety mechanisms, features like infinite scrolling, recommendation algorithms, streaks and gamification often encourage users to engage more with the application.

The truth is banning social media would not necessarily stop children from accessing them. The most logical solution would be to impose stricter child safety settings by default and regulate features that would promote unhealthy engagement with the application. Instead of banning social media, the government could impose stricter regulations requiring tech companies to adopt safer defaults.

What Next?

As for now, there is no social media ban for children in the offing. At least not from the Delhi High Court. The issue has now returned to the government which has to decide what, if any, action should be taken. It is not easy to balance out the need to keep children safe versus giving them access to the Internet for educational purposes.

Business Fortune believes that the government must consider its options on whether to pursue a social media ban or not. Or whether it wants to go down the route of imposing age restrictions, stricter design regulations or something else entirely.

 

FAQs

Did the Delhi High Court ban social media for children?

No. The court ruled that any social media ban or restrictions on children’s access to social media are a policy issue.

What did the PIL seek?

The PIL sought restrictions on children’s access to social media as well as stronger safeguards to protect children from child sexual assault material.

Why is it difficult to implement a social media ban?

A social media ban requires a robust system to ensure that the user is an adult. Children can easily lie about their age or use their parents’ account or phone to use the application.

Can India regulate social media instead of implementing a ban?

Yes. Instead of a social media ban, the government can impose stricter regulations on social media platforms to ensure safer defaults and stricter age verification.

What will happen next?

The government will have to evaluate the Delhi High Court’s order and take a call on what steps, if any, should be taken.