# Landmark consultation seeks views on major measures to protect children on social media, gaming platforms and AI chatbots

[neil@mastodon.neilzone.co.uk]

# Landmark consultation seeks views on major measures to protect children on social media, gaming platforms and AI chatbots

With the Online Safety Act in place for only a short period, the UK government is consulting on more "online safety" measures.

Including, it seems, a digital "overnight curfew" for children.

#OnlineSafetyAct

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/landmark-consultation-seeks-views-on-major-measures-to-protect-children-on-social-media-gaming-platforms-and-ai-chatbots

[onepict@chaos.social]

@neil you know, when I was a teenager I used to read books til four in the morning on occasion. I'd regularly read until one or two.

Sometimes teens don't sleep. I hate this restriction for the kids.

[dan@mastodon.durrans.com]

@neil Call me someone who doesn't have kids, but if parents want an outright ban on social media or an overnight curfew then isn't that something they could do themselves?

[psfshr@mastodon.me.uk]

@dan @neil

Yep…

https://mastodon.me.uk/@psfshr/115802154043229544

[fonant@social.vivaldi.net]

@neil Riiiight... So the government is going to require "highly effective age verification" for anyone wanting to access the internet after 9pm?

[mjr@masto.bike]

@dan @neil ha, no. We've already seen how broken, annoying and ineffective adults are at attempting to restrict children online. It's called the Online Safety Act.

[interpipes@thx.gg]

@dan @neil yes, but that’s not how you force every citizen and visitor in your country to have to show id to use the internet

[etchedpixels@mastodon.social]

@dan @neil the whole thing is a false flag. If you want to stop addictive social media you regulate it for all. This is like the cigarette companies being allowed to murder adults only.

Starmer though hasn't the guts to do that because his orange pal will get cross, nor the clout after Brexit.

[Guest]

@neil omg who are all these people

children have parents, why does anyone want the government involved in this

[gilester45@twit.social]

@dan @neil They had some campaigners on Breakfast just now.

One admitted they "didn't know their child was on SM".

One said they "didn't know how to get on the dark web so they were sure children wouldn't be flocking there" and there was no evidence children were moving to it after the bans in Au and the OSA here (despite the VT literally a minute earlier saying the opposite)

Yes parenting is hard but SM is simply this generation's bogeyman.

Banning it will not help and is not the answer.