Social media giants say no to requests from minister
Foley had wanted safeguards for children enhanced
SOCIAL media giants and phone companies have refused a request by the Education Minister for greater measures to protect children online.
Norma Foley had asked for greater controls from social media companies on age verification and for network companies to support parents in not buying phones for primary school children.
But yesterday, after meeting with stakeholders including Meta, Google and Vodafone, she said they were ‘not prepared to support the work that we’re doing’.
The minister emphasised that the Department of Education is not anti-phone, and though social media is a ‘wonderful gift’, it comes with an ‘enormous responsibility and a duty of care’.
A recent Amarách Research survey for charity CyberSafeKids found 24% of children aged six have their own smartphone, but 52% of parents were not confident about how to teach their children how to stay safe online.
The minister and her officials met representatives from Meta, Google, Microsoft, TikTok, Three Ireland, Vodafone, Tesco and business lobby group Ibec. The social media platform X, formerly Twitter, did not attend.
Ms Foley said there was ‘very robust engagement’ and a ‘very frank and open’ discussion at the meeting, where ‘adult-to-child sextortion’, recommendation algorithms, and AI were discussed.
‘There were two that I was very keen to advance, and the first one was in the area of age verification,’ Ms Foley said after the meeting. ‘I’m very conscious that in particular social media providers would tell us that they have a mandate around the 13 years of age, but I think we all know that there are children younger than 13 accessing these platforms.
She added: ‘I did seek an undertaking from them that they would facilitate age verification, whatever form that might take. I’m not prescriptive on the mechanism, but that we will have clear age verification because we know that children are well able to jump over that particular requirement. That wasn’t forthcoming at present.’
Ms Foley continued: ‘The other issue I very specifically raised, particularly with telecommunication representatives, was around their willingness to support in principle, the position we have taken in the Department of Education to support parents to hold off from purchasing smartphones for children while they’re at primary school. And again, I’d have to say, that wasn’t forthcoming at this point in time.’
When asked what the companies said as to why they would not commit to those requests, Ms Foley said that it was argued it was ‘a parent’s prerogative’ to restrict smartphones for children.
‘I absolutely accept that, and that’s why we’re working directly with parents,’ the Kerry TD said.
‘But they were not prepared to come out, in principle, to support the work that we’re doing in that area at this point, and I want to be fair around that, because they did commit to engage further.’
She said the companies raised concerns about how age verification would be done, and that a passport or a live selfie raised ‘privacy’ concerns. Ms Foley said: ‘I think there can’t be an argument around age verification, I don’t think there could be an argument either around supporting in principle parents, as we encouraged them not to buy into the smartphone for younger children at primary school level.
The minister said she also raised the issue of ‘sextortion’ where an adult can trick a young person into providing explicit material and then threaten to share it. She said: ‘It was interesting to note as well, that there was a time when it was adult to adult, we’re now looking at adult to children. And I’m not saying
‘Very robust engagement’ ‘There will be ramifications’
that it is prolific everywhere, but it is an element that we must be aware of.
She said she also raised the issue of images being altered, distorted, or filtered and ‘the impact from a wellbeing point of view that that can have on young people’.
She said the ultimate responsibility in this area lies with Coimisiún na Meán, the newly established media regulator. The body is establishing an online safety code and will have the power to issue fines. Ms Foley said: ‘There will be ramifications going forward for those who don’t invite themselves into the space.’