Meta has been ordered to pay $567 million and make sweeping changes to Facebook and Instagram after a New Mexico court found that the company’s platforms harmed young people and required stronger protections for minors. The award comes on top of a $375 million civil penalty imposed by a jury in March, bringing Meta’s financial...Read More

Most teenagers intend to opt out of the Government’s planned social media curfews, polling has suggested. Sir Keir Starmer unveiled plans for a voluntary curfew for 16 and 17-year-olds in his final weeks in office. The curfew would prevent teenagers accessing social media sites between midnight and 6am by default, but could be turned off....Read More

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) confer during a markup hearing on August 5. Yuqing Liu/Tech Policy Press. WASHINGTON — The Senate Commerce Committee advanced four bills Wednesday aimed at protecting children from harmful online content and giving parents more control over how minors use social media, artificial...Read More

When Megan Garcia told lawmakers about how her 14-year-old son died by suicide after months of conversations with a chatbot from Character. Al, one of her main requests might have been, on the face of it, the simplest — restrict access for those under a certain age. “I don’t think that chatbot technology in its...Read More

Children and young people spend a lot of time online, and many of them play online games every day. These online environments can also expose them to risks such as cyberbullying, exploitation, recruitment, radicalisation or grooming. The EU-funded project The Gaming Police brings Finnish police into digital spaces, reaching vulnerable young people through the gaming...Read More

The families of four teenagers who died by suicide recently sued Meta, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube, alleging that the teenagers’ use of the platforms over many years was addicting, and caused sleep deprivation, depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. The teenagers committed suicide at the ages of 13, 14, 17, and 18, respectively.  These are not...Read More

BRAINERD — The first-ever CC’s Sack Attack Bags Tournament raised preliminary gross proceeds of more than $6,000 to support Family Fun Day and the Alex & Brandon Child Safety Center, a program of Relationship Safety Alliance. Held July 25 at CC’s Bar in Brainerd, the event brought together 20 teams, volunteers, local businesses, donors and...Read More

A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms in the second phase of a landmark trial the social media giant lost in March. In a ruling late Thursday, Judge Bryan Biedcheid said the bulk of the money —...Read More

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) – As Congress debates new regulations for social media and gaming platforms, a North Alabama juvenile court attorney says keeping children safe online still starts at home. The Kids Online Safety Act is moving forward in Congress after clearing the Senate Commerce Committee. The legislation would hold tech companies to a higher...Read More

(Bloomberg) — A key Senate committee on Wednesday advanced a package of bills aimed at improving children’s safety online, teeing up a showdown with the House over whether to hold Meta Platforms Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google liable for harms done to minors on their social media platforms. Most Read from Bloomberg The bills passed...Read More