Instagram, Snapchat, WhatsApp, TikTok or even online games. It is commonplace that children and young people spend more and more time on their smartphones.

But dangers lurk everywhere.
A law should now ensure more protection for our youngest children on WhatsApp & Co. Federal Minister for Family Affairs Franziska Giffey (SPD) is on the rise here. Your planned law for the protection of children and young people online was voted on by departments last Friday and was therefore submitted to the other federal government ministries for a vote. However, it will be a while before there is a legal decision on this.

[mk_ad]

Content and protection measures

The Youth Media Protection Act is intended to protect children and young people primarily from bullying and sexual assault, but also from cost traps caused by, for example, in-app purchases in games. Protective measures could already be age-appropriate default settings from the providers. There should also be options for complaining on social media platforms so that bullied children and young people can defend themselves and receive help.

[mk_ad]

Commitment to concrete protective measures

Meanwhile, the Funke media group reports, citing the draft, that large platforms that have more than a million users should be required to take concrete protective measures.
Failure to comply with these obligations could result in fines of up to 5 million euros. So that the establishment and compliance with these requirements can be checked, the Federal Testing Agency for Media Harmful to Minors should be expanded into a federal center for children and media protection. As is already the case with DVDs, games on CD or in the cinema, age labels should also be provided for apps and content.

Related to the topic: Study: Smartphone use is harmful to children's health

Source: Westdeutsche Zeitung
Article image: Shutterstock / By mirtmirt


If you enjoyed this post and value the importance of well-founded information, become part of the exclusive Mimikama Club! Support our work and help us promote awareness and combat misinformation. As a club member you receive:

📬 Special Weekly Newsletter: Get exclusive content straight to your inbox.
🎥 Exclusive video* “Fact Checker Basic Course”: Learn from Andre Wolf how to recognize and combat misinformation.
📅 Early access to in-depth articles and fact checks: always be one step ahead.
📄 Bonus articles, just for you: Discover content you won't find anywhere else.
📝 Participation in webinars and workshops : Join us live or watch the recordings.
✔️ Quality exchange: Discuss safely in our comment function without trolls and bots.

Join us and become part of a community that stands for truth and clarity. Together we can make the world a little better!

* In this special course, Andre Wolf will teach you how to recognize and effectively combat misinformation. After completing the video, you have the opportunity to join our research team and actively participate in the education - an opportunity that is exclusively reserved for our club members!


Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )