The Canadian government has introduced a bill that would bar children under 16 from holding social media accounts unless companies can demonstrate they provide a safe digital environment.
Culture Minister Marc Miller said children need stronger protections online, and that the government intends to impose baseline requirements guaranteeing their safety on social platforms.
The legislation includes age verification mechanisms and targets seven categories of harmful content, among them material that encourages self-harm, promotes violence or hatred, and the non-consensual sharing of intimate images.
The bill also calls for the creation of a Canadian Digital Safety Commission, which would oversee compliance, enforce standards, and grant exemptions to platforms that meet the required protection measures.
