Innocent BenjaminThe attorney generals of 44 territories in the United States wrote to Facebook on Monday, May 10, 2021, asking the company to drop its plans to create an Instagram service for children under the age of 13. They cite among other things the harmful effects of social media on the mental health of the youngest and the inglorious past of the Internet giants in terms of protecting the latter.
“It seems that Facebook is not responding to a need, but creating one, because this platform is primarily aimed at children who otherwise would not have an Instagram account , it is stated in this letter . In short, an Instagram platform for kids is harmful for a myriad of reasons. The attorneys general urge Facebook to abandon its plans to launch this new platform,” the statement reads.
“Instagram exploits the fear of young people of missing out on something and the desire for approval from their peers”
The signatories of the letter also cite press reports and research findings which conclude that social media and Instagram in particular have a negative effect on children’s mental well-being, including lowered self-esteem and lowered suicidal thoughts.
“Instagram harnesses the fear of young people of missing out on something and the desire for peer approval, encouraging children and teens to constantly check their smartphones and share photos with their followers […] The relentless focus of the platform on appearance, self-presentation and branded gifts are challenges for the privacy and well-being of adolescents. ”
Confirming that it is working on such a project, in line with a revelation by BuzzFeed last March, Facebook responded in a statement, arguing in particular that it has committed not to broadcast ads in this version of the app for children under 13.
“We agree that any experience we develop must prioritize their security and privacy. We will consult with experts in child development, child safety and mental health, as well as privacy advocates to inform them,” Facebook said.
” We also look forward to working with lawmakers and regulators, including the country’s attorneys General.”
Busy Week For Facebook
The week ahead promises to be a scrutinising week for Facebook and its influential line of social median platforms after Germany took legislative steps against the tech giants.
A German data protection authority on Tuesday ordered Facebook to suspend for three months the use of data made available to it by the WhatsApp messaging service as part of the controversial change to its confidentiality conditions.
The regulator said in a statement to have “issued an order prohibiting Facebook Ireland from processing WhatsApp personal data so far it is done for its own purposes”.
Johannes Caspar, head of the Data Protection Authority in Hamburg, where the headquarters of the German subsidiary of the American social network is based, believes that this decision “aims to preserve the rights and freedoms of the millions of users who give their consent to the conditions of use throughout Germany.”
Resulting from an emergency procedure, the decision is valid for three months and the Hamburg regulator announces that the case has been submitted to the European Data Protection Committee, the body competent within the EU to enforce the rules among the 27.
WhatsApp, Facebook’s messaging service, introduced new privacy rules several months ago that critics accused of expanding data collection for two billion users.
Having already made one postponement on the enforcement of the new regulations by several. months, WhatsApp announced in early May that it was again delaying their strict application.
The announcement of the changes had angered many users, worried that the messaging service should not share more data with its parent company Facebook.
“Criticism leveled around the world against the new terms of use should prompt a fundamental rethinking of the consent mechanism, once again,” writes the German regulator.
He stresses that it is not only a question of protecting the privacy of users but also of avoiding the use of data “to influence the decisions of the voters in order to manipulate the democratic choices,” citing the proximity of the German legislative elections coming up in September 26 with WhatsApp having nearly 60 million users in the country.
WhatsApp however defended these new rules, ensuring that they did not affect the confidentiality of messages exchanged with friends and family, but were above all intended to help companies to better communicate with their customers through the platform, in particular to allow them to sell their products directly there.
OFONIMEH JOHNSON
James steller
Mitrobe Staff