New Delhi: The Supreme Court has clearly said that children have a fundamental right to use the Internet and they cannot be completely banned on the basis of age. The court said that the safety of children and freedom of the Internet are not against each other, but there should be such security measures that keep them safe without taking away their rights.
Age ban will increase danger: Court
The comments come two weeks after the central government announced plans to change IT rules to curb internet use by children below 18 years of age. Earlier, the court had asked the Center whether minors should be prevented from creating social media accounts without parental consent. The Andhra Pradesh government is also considering a plan to ban social media for children below 16 years of age.
The court warned that imposing age-based restrictions could lead children to more dangerous and uncontrolled websites. Also, if they become a victim of online fraud or threat, they will not inform their parents or any trusted person due to fear of punishment.
Strictness on child sexual abuse material
The Supreme Court expressed deep concern over the continued spread of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) on the Internet despite the existing guidelines. The court reprimanded the regulatory bodies and social media platforms, saying that they have failed to take serious steps to protect the victims. A report was placed before the court that paid promotion of such content is also being done on many platforms through redirect links and websites. The court said that currently the content is removed only after the complaint and even after being removed on one platform, it remains on the other platform, due to which there is a delay in its removal.
Instructions to create national database
To stop this, the Supreme Court has directed the Central Government to create a national database of hashes and URLs, so that such content can be identified and removed rapidly on all platforms. The court said that this system should also have verification and complaint redressal mechanism to prevent removal of wrong content. This database should be used only for child sexual abuse material and not for any other content. The court also called for starting an awareness campaign about online dangers among children right from the primary school level, so that they recognize the danger and do not hesitate to seek help.