Mere Words In A Book Will Not Make Children Safer

For as long as age has been used as a limiting factor for getting into public establishments, purchasing market goods, going to work, and even going to war, enterprising individuals at all ages have been successfully working around the limits. Remember fake IDs?

The history of age verification evasion rates substantial mention as politicians on the state and national levels either purposely or unwittingly forget it. Think the various “App Store Accountability” laws making their way through state legislatures, along with Congress itself. These would-be, and in some states already passed laws are superfluous at best, perilous at worst.

Starting with superfluous, the legislation would essentially require Apple and Google to act as the proverbial ID check at the bar when people of all ages use their products, and in particular add apps or otherwise avail themselves of the endless suite of options offered on their products. Apple and Google are way ahead of lawmakers.

They long ago installed features for parents to use so that they can not just limit screen-time on their devices, but crucially tailor the limits to times of day. During school hours parents can block access to apps and internet locales that might distract their children, and they can do the same during homework hours at night, along with late at night when young people should be sleeping instead of searching, communicating, or both.

What about apps and sites that parents would prefer their kids not visit? It’s all covered. Parents are free to block access to what they don’t want their kids to access, but since parents frequently aren’t as up to date as their offspring on the alleged latest and “greatest” of apps, Apple and Google have set it up so that parents are contacted ahead of any attempt by their kids to purchase a new app, or a visit a new, not previously approved internet URL.

Crucial, and this is crucial precisely because the internet has forever qualities, Apple and Google have installed barriers that will blur incoming nude photos. Just as importantly, what works against incomings blurs errantly sent photos going out. Yes, “App Store Accountability” legislation is wholly superfluous. Capitalism is way ahead of legislators.

Some will understandably reply that not all parents know their way around modern technology sufficiently to install and utilize the myriad parental aids provided by Apple and Google. It’s a fair point, but it’s one that vivifies the very real perils of legislation meant to foist on Apple and Google the impossible task of checking IDs.

This has been made apparent in the Washington, D.C. area alone through student excitement about Blooket, “a gamified learning platform where teachers can create or use pre-made quizzes and turn them into interactive games for students.” Despite Blooket’s innocuous qualities, seemingly out of an abundance of caution Blooket erected age-verification limits on students under 19 who wanted accounts. But as the history of fake IDs makes apparent, young people are nothing if not resourceful. Translated, the age limit barriers were quickly worked around.

Which again speaks to the very real peril of state and national legislation of the “App Store Accountability” variety. Precisely because faking one’s age is as old as age verification, the only answer to the problems of online activity not matching the age of users is vigilant parents. Laws will only succeed insofar as they create a false sense of security among parents that an “other” is protecting their children. That’s dangerous.

Mere words will not improve parental outcomes. Luckily Apple and Google have empowered parents to look after their children in ways legislation has never been able to, and that won’t.