Social media firms aren’t doing enough to protect children from lengthy, unhealthy browsing and cyber bullying, according to Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

The health secretary contacted Facebook and Google accusing them of “turning a blind eye” to their alleged impact on young people and has given them until the end of April to outline a plan for tackling the issues. In addition to this, the Health Secretary wants also the firms to promote healthy screen time for children.

The minimum age requirement for platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Youtube and WhatsApp is 13. Is it wise to allow children of such a young age to engage on social media platforms? For parents, this is a growing dilemma – Allowing your child to engage with peers is a crucial part of growing up, however social media encounters can, on occasions, be negative in nature.

Recent studies suggest that mental health issues among young people are exacerbated and even caused by the extended use of social media. Body image issues among young women are becoming increasingly common due to social media use, and cyber bullying is on the rise.

As more and more young people take to social media, what safety measures can firms take to prevent toxic culture and damaging behaviour online?

On The Hunt for Answers…

In his letter, Jeremy Hunt said: “I am concerned that your companies seem content with a situation where thousands of users breach your own terms and conditions on the minimum user age.”

Adding: “I fear that you are collectively turning a blind eye to a whole generation of children being exposed to the harmful emotional side effects of social media prematurely.”

Mr Hunt has previously challenged social media giants on their approach to cyber bullying, and in November 2017 met with six social media companies to discuss how to tackle growing mental health issues among young people using online platforms. Ahead of his meeting in November, the Health Secretary tweeted that firms must take a portion of the responsibility for growing rates of self-harm among young social media users.

We should not'accept' cyber bullying as inevitable but STOP it – my message to social media giants when I meet them for roundtable tomorrow.

— Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) October 31, 2017

Parental Dilemmas

In his letter, Jeremy Hunt goes on to highlight the immense pressure that social media firms are placing on parents; presenting them with new dilemmas on how to approach their child’s social development. As more young people take to social media apps, the risk of social exclusion among those not signed up to sites such as Facebook grows.

Hunt said: “This is both morally wrong and deeply unfair to parents who are faced with the invidious choice of allowing children to use platforms they are too young to access or excluding them from social interaction that often the majority of their peers are engaging in.”

Conservative MP Liz Truss said she has taken drastic measures in the past to prevent her 12-year old from using technology; such as locking away her mobile phone. In an interview with Radio 5 Live she said:

“I have a box which I lock up and put my daughter’s mobile phone in.

“It’s not just the internet, it’s screen time over all. It’s part of being a good parent. I think social media companies can play a part and help parents in that job.”

Protective Measures

Social media giant Instagram – which is owned by Facebook – revealed earlier this month it will begin implementing safety measures for young people using the app. Their ‘wellbeing’ teams will aim to provide on-call assistance to users dealing with mental health issues. Additionally, the app is considering introducing other safety applications, such as warnings for users who have been browsing for extended periods of time.

Facebook and Google both claim they are dedicated to tackling the issues of cyber bullying and damaging browsing patterns on their sites, saying they share Mr Hunt’s commitment to user safety. Facebook offers both user and parent guides on how to pick up on the signs of cyber bullying and how to deal with toxic behaviour.

The guide (found here) also includes links to the Facebook Bullying Prevention Hub, which details how users can protect themselves from harmful or hateful content and harassment.

For organisations such as the National Bullying Helpline (NBH), however, the issue must also be tackled by legislative means. The NBH advocates the introduction of anti-cyber bullying legislation by government as it claims that leaving social media companies to regulate themselves will result in zero change – which, given recent events regarding the use of data, they may be right on this issue.

As well as future legislative changes, the NBH also details how cyber bullying can also fall under current legislation, such as:

• The Protection From Harassment Act 1997
• The Malicious Communications Act 1988
• The Communications Act 2003

Mr Hunt says the government will not rule out the introduction of new legislation to tackle the issue. He has also ordered the chief medical officer to begin a review of the impact of technology on young people; further establishing the potentially damaging side effects of social media.