Madras High Court has urged an Australia-like law banning social media for children under sixteen, stressing that “as far as children are concerned, the vulnerability is high, so the parents’ responsibility is higher” while addressing online pornography access.
The Madras High Court recently urged the Central government to contemplate implementing a law akin to Australia’s new legislation, which prohibits children under 16 from accessing social media platforms such as X, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
A Bench composed of Justices G Jayachandran and KK Ramakrishnan stated that until the Union government investigates the possibility of enacting a similar law, awareness campaigns regarding the dangers of child pornography should be intensified.
The Court ordered,
“Union of India may explore possibility of passing legislation like Australia. Till such legislation is passed, the authorities concerned shall accelerate their awareness campaign more effectively; they shall take the message to the vulnerable group through all available medias. We hope that the Commission [for Protection of Child Rights] both at State and in Central will draw an action plan in this aspect and implement the same in letter and spirit,”
Under the Australian law that recently came into effect, social media companies are required to prevent children under 16 from creating accounts on their platforms, or face significant penalties. This legislation does not target children or their parents.
The Court made this recommendation while addressing a petition related to the easy availability of pornographic materials online.
The petition, brought before the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court, also requested that internet service providers (ISPs) be mandated to offer a parental control or parental window service.
After reviewing the submissions and documents provided, the Court expressed concerns that child rights commissions were not fulfilling their responsibilities as outlined in the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005.
The Court added,
“No doubt, certain awareness campaigns go around focusing children at schools. However, the said campaign is not adequate,”
Nevertheless, the Court refrained from issuing any substantial directives or guidelines, noting that the Supreme Court had previously made recommendations to the Centre and other stakeholders regarding the rights of child sexual abuse victims.
In relation to Internet Service Providers (ISPs), the Court clarified that they are regulated by separate statutes. Counsel representing some ISPs indicated that they periodically review issues and take necessary actions in accordance with the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 when objectionable websites are reported.
The Court observed that despite this, websites hosting child sexual abuse material (CSAM) continue to be accessible.
It emphasized the need for controls at the user level, which can only be accomplished with parental control applications on devices.
The Court stated as it concluded the proceedings on the petition,
“Compulsorily for the said purpose, the end users should be made aware about the menace of child pornography and measures to prevent it. Ultimately, it is the individual choice and right to access such obnoxious material or to avoid it. As far as children are concerned, the vulnerability is high, so the parents’ responsibility is higher,”
Senior Advocate KPS Palanivel Rajan and Advocate K Prabakaran represented the petitioner, while Advocates B Deepa, J Ashok, Chevanan Mohan, Madhan Babu, RG Shankar Ganesh, and MD Poornachare appeared for various respondents.