Social Media Ban India: The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Central Government regarding a petition seeking to prohibit children under the age of 18 from creating accounts on social media and other digital platforms. The petition also calls for safety measures regarding social media usage, specifically mandating the consent of parents or legal guardians. It notes that Meta and other social media companies have set the minimum age for account creation at 13, aligning with US law.
What does the petition state?
The petition, filed by the NGO ‘Just Rights for Children Alliance’, points out that platforms like Facebook and Snapchat (India) allow users to create accounts from the age of 13, whereas Indian law classifies individuals under 18 as minors. It seeks directives to amend the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, or to formulate specific guidelines ensuring that no digital platform enters into a social media contract with a child under 18 without parental or legal guardian consent—or, alternatively, that such contracts be subject to parental/guardian verification or e-KYC.
Concerns regarding direct access for children
The petition further demands the formulation of guidelines mandating that whenever a minor is permitted to access or use a digital platform, such access must occur through a legally recognized process involving parents or legal guardians. This process should include parental or guardian verification or e-KYC, tailored to the nature of the service and the associated risks. The petition states that children’s independent access to digital platforms exposes them to risks such as online grooming, sexual exploitation, trafficking, behavioral profiling, misuse of personal data, cyberbullying, and age-inappropriate content.
