Today’s Social Media Ban Announcement: Discussion

[ByeByeTikTok]

I haven’t seen a thread for today’s expected ban on social media for Under 16s so thought I’d start one. If there already is one pls link and I’ll get this deleted.

What will it likely include?
What won’t it include?
How do you and your kids feel about it, especially if they’re already using it?
Will you follow it, and when?
Will people try to get round it?

WhatsApp and blue sky are not included in the ban

This

This is what it's designed to do. If they gave a shit about children they'd have properly addressed the grooming gangs problem.

What is with this agenda?
Why do posters keep making things up and posting as facts?
There has been no complete list of what has been banned, blue sky has not been mentioned as not being banned.
The government has specifically mentioned in their press release that WhatsApp is not included in the ban.

Exactly.
All laws get broken by some. That's not a reason to abandon the law.
Kids get fake ID for buying alcohol or capes but that's not a reason to allow free access to all.
This should reduce harm overall, it won't be perfect but it's a start.

I agree with the poster that said there is a lost cohort here but again, not a reason to not try.

The BBC have published them I'm watching the news now

"When will the UK social media ban start, and which apps will be affected? - BBC News" https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ceqdny4l3jdo

I'm not sure what curfews will mean.

Yep. My DC grew up in the early 2000s. We thought we were savvy parents because DH was in tech but we still made mistakes.
I did monitor and limit access far more than any of their contemporaries and saw some stuff their friends posted online that made my hair stand on end.

They haven’t!!

From your own link “A complete list of which platforms the ban will apply to has not been released.”

You can watch as a guest, that’s what I do

Surely a vpn will solve all the issues for adults not wanting to give information over ?

Until every platform demands ID from everyone and there is no guest access anymore.

At today's press conference Starmer said the ban would come into effect in the early part of next year and be enforced through age recognition facial scans and digital IDs.

Everyone will need to prove they aren't under 16 and those are the methods available. Personally I will be using a VPN. I don't want my passport, facial features or digital ID getting stolen by cyber thieves. Even platforms that say they don't hold the personal data have been caught out - 3 out of the 4 that use this verification leaked personal data (Discord is one of them). A mandatory digital ID scheme was announced earlier this year, the govt did back off from this a bit after backlash and petitions. The social media ban will be the backdoor into enforcing digital ID as people will find they need it to use social media.

This will start happening sooner than next year as companies will look to get this implemented to get ahead of this, so we could see it in a month or two.

Does this mean influencers can no longer use their under 16 children in their accounts?

Thank you. So, how does banning YouTube for under-16s actually protect teens in that case? Will they not just be able to watch as guests instead?

This is a genuine question by the way, for anyone who might be able to answer. I'm trying to understand the rationale. Are the algorithms different for guest viewers or something?

Hopefully.

How do you vpn on phone?

Yes they could watch as guests but remember, if you have an account, YT builds an algorithm of the things you like to watch. In the case of teens this could be addictive things that ends up with them watching for hours on end. As a guest, there's none of that, so the focus is on breaking addictive cycles of harmful material.

You get a vpn app, many of which are free.

I use proton vpn

You can still use a VPN on a phone. As I don't use my phone for the Internet I don't know all the details of using them, but I know they can be used. I believe you may need to adjust your phone's geolocation though otherwise it would override the VPN's location. This thread on Reddit provides more insight:

https://www.reddit.com/r/VPN/comments/hige8s/do_vpns_on_phones_really_work/

Well no I guess they'll ban porn sites. But these are the big sites. That most people use.

Um download it lol

Yebbut you have to decide which one is best so research is needed. If you've a young adult in your circle you can ask for help. But government to ban VPN too.

I think an outright ban seems a bit silly. Going from “no social media at all full stop” at 15 to “free rein over everything” at 16 seems like a recipe for disaster to me.

i think that stronger controls are required, true age verification is needed! I remember when I was younger I just set my birthdate as being older to get a Facebook account. Things like that need to be stopped, with proper parental controls and restrictions on content etc.

but I do think a total ban doesn’t help to teach kids anything and will just cause chaos in older teens!

Posters like you need to stop spreading false claims about what will or won’t be included when some of these, particularly the frequent mention to Bluesky have not been mentioned as being immune to the ban.

There’s a very clear agenda to try and paint this as a left vs right issue with so many people parroting that ‘left leaning’ Bluesky is being allowed but twitter is being unfairly targeted.

I quoted the BBC. Your beef is with them not me.

This is fabulous news.
A then teenager very close to me was horrifically groomed on line. Her parents had all the apps, checked her phone, talked to her. They got there first, and when the groomers realised we knew and had removed all devices they sent her a new phone to a locker near school to collect. Communicated via school email, she’d given that much data to them.
they taught her how to get around security apps and be back online. When I say her life is ruined it really is. The things she’s done and seen are horrific and she didn’t really finish school. It was assumed at 14 that she’d be safe on social media, but there are some pretty awful people lurking behind names and targeting children.
to ban all under 16s is the right approach as it stops half the class having it and those with cautious parents from not being bullied or left out. Her parents hung on as long as possible, she was bullied so they gave in and now this may not happen.
My only concern is that teenagers will find loop holes and if they do become groomed they’ve lost the safe space they once had in parents checking sm for them because it’ll be assumed they don’t. A big worry.
this is fantastic news though and will hopefully save others lives from being ruined