France will require parental consent for minors to use TikTok

There National Assembly The French voted this Thursday to demand social networks such as ICT Tac oh Snapchat which verify parental consent for the registration of minors under 15 years of age. The bill, presented by the leader of the deputies of Horizons (liberal), Laurent Marcangeli, was approved almost unanimously (82 votes for and 2 against) at first reading. It must now be examined by the Senate.

Marcangeli defended theessential guarantees“which must be defined before”the increasing precocity of digital puberty and the power of the tools available to our young people”.

In your opinion, “we must protect our young people from the risks of pornography, cyberbullying, unattainable beauty standards and addictive ways of attracting attention”.

There “the digital ageof 15 years to which the text refers is not new: it was introduced in France in 2018 in application of European legislation, which left the possibility of setting it between 13 and 16 years.

But this threshold refers more broadly to the age below which parental consent is required for the processing of personal data of a minor. not really applied and it had no impact in terms of children’s access to social media.

To remedy this, the text voted on Thursday intends to introduce the obligation for social networks “implement a technical solution to verify the age of end users and the consent of holders of parental authorityfor children under 15, which must be certified by the authorities.

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Companies that do not comply with the future law would expose themselves to a fine of up to 1% of the company’s worldwide turnover.

The text, which was discussed during a day reserved for the group Horizons (ally of the ruling party), also gives parents the option of requesting the suspension of the account of a minor under the age of 15.

An amendment also added a restriction by providing that parents could not give consent for children under 13.

“It is for all of us – parents, companies, young people – to assume our responsibility“in the face of the increase in digital practices of minors, argued Laurent Marcangeli.

In social networks, the first registration takes place »on average around eight and a half years old, and more than half of children aged 10 to 14 are present“, according to data from the National Commission for Computing and Liberties (CNIL), quoted by the deputies.

The French government also plans to test an age verification solution in March to prevent minors from accessing porn sites.

original note by RFI.