Facebook 18+
July 24th, 2011 | by Jen |Ways to force Facebook to give parents access to their kids’ profiles will be discussed today by state and federal attorneys-general in a meeting that will also examine an 18+ Facebook age limit.
The idea was first proposed by a South Australian Family First MP, Dennis Hood, and is being championed by South Australian Attorney-General John Rau. Rau argued that giving parents assistance to supervise their children on Facebook would help protect against online predators and limit access to unsuitable material.
But Susan McLean, who was Victoria Police’s first cyber safety officer and is now an online safety consultant, said the proposal was “ill informed and it shows a total lack of understanding of what the internet is”.
“It’s not Facebook’s fault that there are problems on Facebook. You can’t legislate against stupidity or poor parenting or anything like that,” said McLean.
Facebook’s terms of use currently requires users to be aged at least 13 but there is no proof of age requirement and kids regularly lie to gain access.
At their meeting today, the country’s top lawmakers will consider requiring proof of age checks and even raising the age limit to 18, federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland confirmed.