©Allied MediaCo-founder and director of Our Kids Online Rob Cope spoke to about 200 people about the impact of unrestricted internet and social media use on young people at Dunedin North Intermediate on Monday night. Photo: Peter McIntosh A plan to ban under-16s from social media is a step in the right direction, but meaningless without a broader understanding of the risks of online platforms to young people, a Dunedin school principal says. The government’s proposal was met with tentative support across Otago on Monday, though questions remained about the effectiveness and practicality of the proposed restrictions. The proposed changes, labelled an “election piece” by one online safety expert, included requirements for “high risk” social media platforms, such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, to take reasonable steps to check users were over the age of 16. An online safety regulator would monitor compliance, investigate platforms and enforce the law — platforms failing to meet their obligations could be fined up to 10% of a platform’s global revenue. Education Minister Erica Stanford said the Online Safety Bill would bring New Zealand in line with other countries placing greater responsibility on technology companies to protect children online. National’s coalition partners Act New Zealand and New Zealand First have said they will not support the Bill, which will require Labour’s backing to pass its first reading. The announcement coincided with a youth cybersafety presentation attended by about 200 parents and caregivers at Dunedin North Intermediate on Monday night. Principal Heidi Hayward said as existing social media age restrictions were already widely flouted, a law change was only a first step in a “co-ordinated community response”. “Yes, hard and fast rules are one thing, but it actually has to start with understanding,” Ms Hayward said. “Why do we not want our kids on these things, what is it actually doing to their brains? I think that's the conversation that actually isn't had.” Underage drinking and smoking was “totally socially unacceptable” because people understood the risks they posed to young people — the same should be true of social media, Ms Hayward said. Speaker Rob Cope, co-founder and director of cybersafety resource provider Our Kids Online, said at a glance, banning social media was “only one slice of the pie”. “It’s an election piece,” he said. “All Australia did was they banned 10 social media apps and all you need is a [virtual private network] to get around them, and it's a complete waste of time. He had drafted his own Bill intended to keep children safe online, including internet filtering for minors built into internet routers and devices. ©Allied MediaAbout 200 parents and caregivers attended Mr Cope's presentation. Photo: Peter McIntosh Mr Cope’s presentation covered the “harsh” reality of children’s online worlds and ways to keep them safe. These included filtering content, no devices in bedrooms or bathrooms and parents facing their own social media addictions. Parents at the event were broadly supportive of the changes — one mother said they were a “good start” but she wondered how they would be effectively policed. Another mother said any changes would have to be meaningful. “How do we do it and make it work?” High school students across Otago felt the proposal had benefits and drawbacks. South Otago High School head boy Rashaun Melvin, 17, said it was a “good thing” to try to reduce social media harm. “Some of my friends were annoyed by the [earlier] phone ban in schools, so I’m sure there will be some under-16s who won’t like this either, but just because people will try to find a way around it, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.” Blue Mountain College student Hollie Crawford, 15, said a ban could cut young people off from peers, though she expected they would find workarounds. “It’s supposed to keep teenagers safe from cyber-bullying and from older users, which is good but, especially if you live rurally like a lot of young people down here, it can be your main way of contacting and communicating with friends. Dunstan High School student Vanessa Kinney, 14, said young people would miss social media if a ban was enforced. “But if we never had it to begin with, we wouldn’t know any different, and we definitely wouldn’t rely on it like we do.” — Additional reporting Richard Davison, Carys Trotter ruby.shaw@odt.co.nz
