Government’s big plan: Social media access will be decided according to age, new rule may come soon

Instead of completely banning the social media use of children and minors, the central government is preparing a new plan to control it on the basis of age. Instead of imposing a complete ban, different levels of permission are being considered according to the age of the children. The government is holding extensive discussions with industry and experts. This includes important suggestions like parental control, limit of screen time, ban on some features and increasing accountability of platforms. The final decision regarding the age limit has not been taken yet.

age limit consideration

The discussions are mainly based on two options – making separate rules for children below 13 years of age and teenagers aged 16 years and above. The government believes that the existing security measures are not sufficient as children easily create accounts by giving false age.

Challenge in rural areas

In rural areas and low-income families, the same mobile phone is shared among the entire family, making it very difficult to verify age accurately. Officials are acknowledging that current safeguards are not fully protecting children from online threats.

government’s main focus

The main focus of the government is to protect children from online wrong material, cyber threats and undue influence. Instead of imposing a complete ban, an attempt is being made to find a balanced path. In this, the emphasis is on giving more control to parents, making social media platforms more responsible and developing better ways to accurately check the age of users.

Challenges in implementing the new rule

Experts say that if the age limit is fixed at 16 or 18 years, then the platforms will have to change their policies. This may also raise privacy issues and affect the digital access of some children. Especially in rural areas where the entire family has only one device, implementing the rules will be a big challenge.

the way forward

The government is currently considering several models, in which different levels of restrictions can be imposed on the basis of age. This change can be implemented by amending the IT rules. Along with strengthening the protection of children, the government is also taking full care of privacy, practical difficulties of implementation and not unnecessarily limiting digital access. The final decision will be taken only after hearing the opinions of all parties.