IEEE makes progress to improve online safety for children

Children are using the Internet at an earlier age and spend more time online, according to UNICEF. One in three Internet users worldwide is under 18.Inform. An increasing amount of practices and content online is affecting children mentally, emotionally and physically, in addition to representing a risk to their safety.

This has led many governments and regulatory agencies around the world to introduce legislation to reduce online addictive characteristics and take measures to restrict young people through various means, even when ordering that online sites use systems to verify the age of a user. These systems can provide the tranquility of parents, knowing that the website has taken measures to deactivate addictive algorithmic mechanisms and present children -oriented content and is safe to use them.

To help developers build appropriate websites for age, IEEE standard association He has published two guidelines: one for the design process of appropriate sites for age for children and the other so that the systems verify the age of the online user. IEEE SA also launched a related certification program.

Maintain children’s rights and design with age in mind

The IEEE 2089-2021 standard for a digital services framework appropriate for age based on the principles of 5 Rights for children provides practical steps to qualify online products and services for children. Introduced in 2021, the standard requires that the systems present information in an appropriate way for age and maintain the rights established for young people in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The follow -up IEEE 2089.1-2024Standard for online age verification, provides a framework to design, specify, evaluate and implement age verification systems. Launched last year, IEEE 2089.1 includes requirements for privacy protection, data security and specific information management for the age guarantee process. The standard also provides procedures to verify the age range or age of a user with a high degree of precision.

Age verification helps organizations to present appropriate content for age, guarantees that their marketing materials align with the regulations designed to protect minors and generate confidence with parents, he says Jon LabradorDirector of Conformity Evaluation for IEEE SA.

Indonesia used key provisions of the two IEEE standards to inform your regulation of child protectionwhich was signed in the law in May. It is the first Appropriate design regulation in AsiaAccording to him Fundación 5 RightsAn international NGO that works for a digital world for children that respects rights. The law requires that online service providers prioritize the best interests of children in the design and practices of their platform.

The collaboration is “an example of IEEE that puts its mission into practice in a concrete way to support the needs of society and children, where the global perspective and technical knowledge of IEEE combined with the dedication of the Indonesian authorities to achieve a successful result,” said Sophia Muirhead, Executive Director and Operational Operational of IEEE, in a press release.

“Together,” said Muirhead, “we allow the development of a practical and prospective legal framework and regulation that will make digital space safer for the next generation in Indonesia and, we hope, it will inspire similar actions worldwide.”

Age verification system certification

IEEE SA this year launched its Online Age Verification Certification Programwhich evaluates the systems to ensure that they fit the IEEE 2089.1 framework.

“This certification program guarantees that the age verification systems used by organizations conform to the requirements in the standard, thus ensuring that access to their products and services is carried out after proper verification,” he says Ravi SubramaniamSenior Director for Business Business, Product and Marketing Development of IEEE SA.

“He says that this organization prioritizes the rights and needs of children, designing tools that guarantee their safety, privacy, autonomy and agency.”

Six indicators are used to qualify the systems:

• Accuracy. The degree to which the verification process determines the user’s age.
• Safety frequency. How often does the website verify the user’s age?
• Measures against fraud. The mechanisms used to prevent fraudulent attempts to avoid the verification process.
• Authenticity. The age documentation provided by the genuine user?
• Frequency of authenticity. How often is the user’s claimed age verified?
• Birthdate. A specific indicator that determines the level of confidence in the precision of the birthday provided, using variable levels of rigor according to the age verification method.

IEEE SA commissioned the Age verification certification schemeA British provider of age verification services, to perform evidence that leads to the IEEE certification.

“As the digital world continues to evolve, a reliable, safe and The world recognized frame is essential to verify the age of online users” Tony AllenFounder and Executive Director of age check, he said in a press release. “We are proud to work with the IEEE standards association to advance in the cause of online security for the youth of the world.”

For more information about the certification program, complete This form.

Promote safer online environments worldwide

IEEE has also participated in the recommendation of website designs with children in mind. Konstantinos karachaliosAn advisor to Muirhead and former managing director of IEEE SA, moderated a discussion panel With the Prime Minister of Greece and the president of the 5 Rights Foundation in a global forum on the held this month in Athens. The regulation on the design of online systems is gaining land, according to a press release summarizing the discussion.

“Models and algorithms [of the systems] They are designed to promote addition, “said Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. He described the current situation as an” unprecedented global experiment with the mental health of our children and adolescents. “

Greece recently launched a Strategy to protect minors onlineBased on the standards and experience of IEEE, and that leads to the Greek government that proposes a series of measures informed for an appropriate regulatory framework for age, which also includes a system for the verification of age and content filtering.

Baroness Beeban KidronPresident of 5 Rights and member of the United Kingdom Lores Chamber, agreed with Mitsotakis. The digital environment for children has been designed to be addictive, he said, but can be done to be safer.

“This is 100 percent designed world,” Kidron said. “We have to design the world to be appropriate for children, as we design other environments.”

She said that regulations should focus on how systems are designed and developed, specifically through an effective predetermined configuration instead of depending on reactive tools or parental controls.