188

How can we protect kids from the harms of social media without sacrificing everyone's privacy? (piefed.ca)

submitted 5 days ago by ageedizzle@piefed.ca to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

249 comments fedilink hide all child comments

I'm asking for public policy ideas here. A lot of countries are enacting age verification now. But of course this is a privacy nightmare and is ripe for abuse. At the same time though, I also understand why people are concerned with how kids are using social media. These products are designed to be addictive and are known to cause body image issues and so forth. So what's the middle ground? How can we protect kids from the harms of social media in a way that respects everyone's privacy?

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[-] ChristerMLB@piefed.social 10 points 4 days ago

Some of it can be accomplished by just setting universal demands for how social media works for all users:

ban targeted advertising
make it mandatory for companies to ensure algorithms don't prioritize posts for making users angry, scared or depressed

Stuff like that. These kinds of regulations don't involve ID checks, and could take care of a big chunk of the problem.

[-] ageedizzle@piefed.ca 2 points 4 days ago

The ban target advertising would definitely be a more realistic solution than banning advertisements in general (which some people are advocating for here). I really am not a fan of ads and would love if they were banned, but I understand that it's not politically realistic due to what a large role they play in our economy.

[-] ChristerMLB@piefed.social 2 points 2 days ago

It is apparently a movement, but it gets way too little attention: https://www.politico.eu/article/targeted-advertising-tech-privacy/

[-] Alpha71@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago

but I understand that it’s not politically realistic due to what a large role they play in our economy.

Wut.

[-] ageedizzle@piefed.ca 1 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

I should have been more clear. I mean banning advertising in general would not be realistic, so a ban on targeted advertising is a more realistic alternative

[-] Bazoogle@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago

This doesn't solve the problem at the core of social media. The inevitable comparison of fake lives on impressionable children/teens has been shown to cause depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideations. There is nothing that can be done algorithm or advertising wise that would stop that from happening.

[-] ChristerMLB@piefed.social 1 points 2 days ago

So you're suggesting just outright banning social media?

[-] Saledovil@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 days ago

If you do the 1st one, then most companies likely wouldn't bother with such algorithms anymore.

[-] ChristerMLB@piefed.social 2 points 2 days ago

I dunno, they will still want people to stick around on their site, so they can see their ads.

[-] Saledovil@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago

I figure a ban of targeted advertisement would look like "The ads are only allowed to change once a day, and everybody during said day sees the same ads". Whereas currently, each time you load a website, there's an impromptu auction to sell the ad spots. (Advertisers don't actually have to pay until you click their ad). So there would be less incentive to keep the user constantly engaged, as it would be enough if the user just visits regularly.

[-] ChristerMLB@piefed.social 1 points 1 day ago

That's interesting, and maybe better than what I had in mind.

[-] Saledovil@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago

What did you have mind?

this post was submitted on 18 Feb 2026

188 points (100.0% liked)

Ask Lemmy

38041 readers

1514 users here now

A Fediverse community for open-ended, thought provoking questions

Rules: (interactive)

1) Be nice and; have fun

Doxxing, trolling, sealioning, racism, and toxicity are not welcomed in AskLemmy. Remember what your mother said: if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. In addition, the site-wide Lemmy.world terms of service also apply here. Please familiarize yourself with them

2) All posts must end with a '?'

This is sort of like Jeopardy. Please phrase all post titles in the form of a proper question ending with ?

3) No spam

Please do not flood the community with nonsense. Actual suspected spammers will be banned on site. No astroturfing.

4) NSFW is okay, within reason

Just remember to tag posts with either a content warning or a [NSFW] tag. Overtly sexual posts are not allowed, please direct them to either !asklemmyafterdark@lemmy.world or !asklemmynsfw@lemmynsfw.com. NSFW comments should be restricted to posts tagged [NSFW].

5) This is not a support community.

It is not a place for 'how do I?', type questions. If you have any questions regarding the site itself or would like to report a community, please direct them to Lemmy.world Support or email info@lemmy.world. For other questions check our partnered communities list, or use the search function.

6) No US Politics.

Please don't post about current US Politics. If you need to do this, try !politicaldiscussion@lemmy.world or !askusa@discuss.online

Reminder: The terms of service apply here too.