Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

France’s global push for online child safety

France’s global push for online child safety

The French president launched the Children Online Protection Laboratory to shield minors from harmful internet content
French President Emmanuel Macron made the protection of children online one of his top priorities during his re-election campaign. He now wants to make France a global influencer on the issue. 

The Elysée Palace on Thursday announced the creation of a Children Online Protection Laboratory to improve safety for minors online across the world. The initiative aims to pull in campaigners, researchers and tech giants to figure out best practices on issues ranging from privacy to digital literacy.

Meta Platforms, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, TikTok and French platform Dailymotion agreed to sign a charter, modeled after the Christchurch Call, a non-binding initiative led after the 2019 Christchurch terror attacks by Macron and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern aimed at curbing the spread of terrorist material on the internet. 

Child safety online is a hot-button issue in Europe, encompassing key digital angles such as privacy protection, the fight against cyberbullying, the proliferation of child sexual abuse material, age verification on adult websites and social networks, and mental well-being.

France's move comes amid a wider set of actions on child safety in the past few years, as both the French president and First Lady Brigitte Macron have pushed for reforms on the issue.

But while some of their efforts have proven successful, others have yielded mixed results: The country's flagship legislation aimed at preventing minors from accessing adult websites has so far not been entirely implemented by porn platforms, more than two years after it was voted through. 

Age verification online raises other issues, including privacy, and the rules are currently facing challenges in courts, as policymakers have left it to companies to come up with solutions on their own.

Emmanuel Macron has long used the Paris Peace Forum as a launching pad for international initiatives on technology and cyber. Last year, he launched, together with UNICEF, a call for action to defend children’s rights online.

In the first year, participants will work on developing a trusted third-party system to verify the age of Internet users; on AI technology to detect conversations where sexual predators pose as minors ; and the creation of a shared database among platforms to identify and remove non-consensual intimate images shared online. 


Age verification stalemate

It's unclear how the Laboratory's projects will interact with the flurry of child-protection rules adopted in France in the past few years, including a law to require smartphone and tablet manufacturers to give parents the option to control their children’s internet access and another to fight against cyberbullying at school. 

It's also unclear how it will work with the EU's draft regulation on the fight against child sexual abuse online, that Paris — unlike Berlin — backs in Brussels. 

Projects on age verification however could help France get out of the stalemate it's currently in when it comes to adult websites, as policymakers have long said that solutions should come from the industry. 

On the ground, however, the legislation requiring adult websites to verify their users' age is running into technical and legal obstacles, resulting in a legal tug-of-war between the audiovisual and platform regulator Arcom and porn websites. 

The next legal move will come from France's highest court — the Cour de Cassation —  which has until early January next year to decide whether to ask the Constitutional Council to assess the French age verification rules' compatibility with the Constitution.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Hungary's Prime Minister Criticizes NATO's Role in Ukraine
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Hungarian Scientist to Conduct 30 Research Experiments on the International Space Station
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
International Astronaut Team Launched to Space Station
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
Oil Prices Set to Surge After US Strikes Iran
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
×