Parenting is hard, and it’s only gotten harder in the digital age. As new technologies continue to emerge, parents consistently face the dilemma of wanting their kids to have access to the benefits new technologies may provide, but also wanting to ensure that that new gadget or service is appropriate for their kid.
This is especially true when it comes to social media, which allows pre-teens/teens to connect with one another, learn about others’ perspectives and form a sense of community. But platforms can also have drawbacks if not used in a responsible manner. That being said, I’m concerned to see the heavy-handed patchwork approach that policymakers in some states are taking to regulate social media use.
It’s clear we need leaders on this issue like US Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy to advocate for a federal solution that provides a consistent solution to make life easier for parents and empower them, not the government, to make informed decisions about what is best for their children. To me, that starts with parental consent for app downloads through the app store.
First, let’s talk about why the approach being deployed in some states across the country won’t work. You may have seen that some states have outright banned social media for residents below a certain age, or are floating an app-by-app parental consent approach that relies on tech companies conducting their own highly personal search into the profile of any person who tries to sign up. This creates huge privacy issues by requiring users to repeatedly hand over their social security number or other highly personal information for verification.
This not only poses a cybersecurity risk to kids and parents amid an increase in breaches and hacks, but also makes life even harder for parents, who will have to track which rules and requirements apply to which sites depending on the state they reside in.
To simplify this process, empower parents to make the decision of what’s best for their family. Create rules that minimize cyber risk. Lawmakers should pursue a federal policy that asks for parental consent for downloads at the App Store level for users under the age of 16. This approach streamlines the process and makes it safer, because varying pieces of personal information are not required across countless apps when platforms are easily able to verify users’ age. Under this solution, app stores would be obligated to notify parents when their children intend to download an app, similar to how parents are alerted if their child tries to make a purchase.
I do think there are things states can do to assist parents in ensuring their kids are having a suitable experience online. One example is investing in education and awareness programs about social media tools for parents. Platforms are creating various new tools that enable parents to adjust items like time limits for their kids’ accounts or sensitive content filters which prevent kids from being exposed to content that might not be suitable for them yet. Many parents don’t know these tools exist yet, but if we broaden awareness about their existence, it could help countless parents gain a higher sense of confidence that their child is having an appropriate experience online.
Lawmakers should continue to assess ways they can assist parents in the digital age, but with regard to parental consent measures for social media signups, consistency and the safety of users’ private information should be paramount.
That’s why I urge federal lawmakers to implement a national approach that requires parental consent for app downloads through the App Store.
