Lawmakers are pushing tech and social media companies to make the internet safer for kids, but it will be hard to enforce restrictions.

Lawmakers are pushing tech and social media companies to make the internet safer for kids, but it will be hard to enforce restrictions. According to a 2017 study by tech privacy firm SuperAwesome Inc, by the time a child turns 13-years-old, advertising and tech companies have already captured about 72 million data points about them. And YPulse’s The Privacy Issue trend research found that the majority of Millennial parents are concerned about their child’s online privacy. Because of these mounting concerns, legislators across Europe, Australia, and the U.S. are proposing new children’s codes to make the internet safer for kids—and if they work, it would force apps to offer alternative versions for children. But many of the laws “hinge on consistently and accurately recognizing when web users are under age, without compromising users’ privacy.” Many of the proposals impose age minimums, but “neglect to offer rules around how the information is gathered or kept secure.” Other proposals have seemingly “good intentions,” but otherwise lack the two bodies that oversee the international standards for businesses [that] have crafted internet age-verification proposals.” (Bloomberg, Engadget)