Canada to ban social media accounts for under-16

Canada seeks to ban social media accounts for children under 16, joining a growing global effort to tighten safety protections.

Canada introduced legislation on Wednesday that could prohibit children younger than 16 to have social media accounts, unless the platform have sufficient safeguards.

The legislation covers seven types of harmful content including content that induces children to harm themselves, content that incites violence and foments hatred and non-consensual intimate images.

Exemption is available if the platform can prove they are safe, and age verification will also be established.

The legislation also regulates the artificial intelligence chatbot to act responsibly, such as incorporating crisis intervention protocols.