Child Safety vs. First Amendment - Again
This week on June 3rd, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction against Florida, temporarily blocking a bill signed into law by Governor Ron Desantis in 2024 that restricted access to social media to children in his state under the age of 16. The plaintiffs in the case, Computer & Communications Industry Association and NetChoice claimed the bill was likely unconstitutional and was a barrier to free speech. Another such law in Georgia is being challenged in court as well.
Here we go again. These cases and their ongoing debate demonstrates the complexity of navigating multiple sides of the political, ideological, technical and commercial landscape of our increasingly online world. While all this drama plays out, child safety is on the back burner. Why?
1. Ideology. Voices on both the liberal and conservative camps have very different views on what content is acceptable to “individuals aged below that of legal majority” (minors). While minors in previous centuries possessed no legal rights, this has changed gradually over the past three. Children in many if not most states can now consent to their own medical care without their parents consent or knowledge. This includes care for sexually transmitted diseases, substance abuse, mental health treatment and more. Insurance companies are even required under certain circumstances to shield the actual nature of the care provided in order to protect the privacy of minors. It is not surprising that different viewpoints would extend to what information provided online is safe for children.
2. Technical Complexity. As a computer engineer I see the fallibility of attempts to restrict access to online servers on the basis of age and state of residence from the server side. Age verification is complex and unlike countries like China that have serious restrictions on “free speech”, the United States does not have the technical and legal mechanisms in place to absolutely control what individuals and firms do online. And no, AI cannot verify a persons age with certainty. There are too many errors causing serious operating problems for these online firms. In addition, VPNs and other applications today help minors and adults alike disguise their online identity.
3. Liability. Placing the liability risk on technology companies for not ensuring their platforms are “safe” based on the age of a child is a messy idea given the previous arguments. We have laws that minors cannot drive a motor vehicle on public roads until they are licensed and of a certain age. We do not require auto makers to ensure that children below a certain age cannot drive their vehicles, cannot drive to certain places or drive above a certain speed. It is the parents responsibility to ensure their unlicensed 13 year old child does not take the family car out in the middle of the night. We might be told that technology (AI) can help us do this but are we going to enact laws to make the manufacturers do this? Seatbelts, airbags yes, but driver age verification?
4. Legal System. Even when laws or executive actions are enacted, there will be court challenges. Even if implementing child age verification was easy, the nature of the ultimate restrictions would be challenged in our courts, and for years. I would argue we don’t have years to argue.
Solutions - The former US Surgeon General has called on everyone to participate in finding the solution. Here are some ideas:
Online Firm Safety Requirements - Display warning notifications (i.e. warning labels) and monitor for content that does meet the policy standards of the online platform. Enforce basic age restriction based on stated age.
Parent Education - Schools, health professionals and healthcare advocacy organizations can play a powerful role in informing and educating parents. Direct parental supervision will remain the most effective way to keep children safe online. Parents should be provided with the information and the resources to provide that supervision.
New Technology - Technology companies can develop new devices and applications to help parents keep children safe.
Research Funding - The government, in its responsibility for protecting public health, can increased research funding into the effects of new technology (all types) on the safety and wellbeing of children
Sentinel Computers, with the introduction of the LaunchPad personal computer, has taken a first step towards providing a simple, affordable way to help parents keep their children safe and productive online.