Apparently, some companies just don’t like child privacy
Issue #63
Back in August 2022, California enacted a new law called the Age-Appropriate Design Code Act. I’ve written about this legislation before, but here is the main idea: basically, tech companies must proactively consider children’s wellbeing if they make products that children are likely to use. The bill was passed unanimously. And about 90% of voters in California support the bill as well. That’s not surprising, because this law seems like, well, common sense. When you’re building anything for children, you should absolutely consider their wellbeing.
I’m not surprised that this law has broad support from legislators and voters in California. I’m also not surprised that an internet trade association whose members include Meta, TikTok, Twitter, Amazon and Google is suing to block the law.
The internet trade group called NetChoice claims that the law violates the First Amendment by “controlling online speech.” They also claim that the new law does more harm than good by forcing service providers to identify which users are under 18 years. From where I’m sitting, both arguments are a little out there, but I guess you can’t blame them for trying.
A law like this threatens the way that Meta, TikTok, Google and other Big Tech platforms operate. They’re used to harvesting as much data as they want with relative impunity. They’re used to collecting user information and using it to make money. They’re used to designing products that capture our attention at all costs because user engagement translates to profits for them. Remember that these companies have a history of violating existing child privacy laws; each has faced fines for the way they handle children’s information. So it’s no surprise that TikTok, Meta and Google aren’t all that happy about new legislation that places additional limits on their business.
The fact that they’re suing to block proves what we already know: their existing products are not designed with kids’ best interests in mind. And when faced with the mandate to start designing products in such a way, TikTok, Meta, Google and other Big Tech platforms are pushing back. That’s because it’s not easy to take a platform designed to extract adults’ attention and data—and make it healthy for children. When you want to design a product with kids’ wellbeing in mind, you need to start from the ground up. It takes time, energy, money. Some companies just aren’t interested in rising to the challenge, so they sue instead.
At Kinzoo, we’re not sweating this legislation. In fact, we welcome this kind of thing, because we’ve been designing for children’s wellbeing since the outset. We didn’t need lawmakers to make us do that. We just believe it’s the right thing to do. There’s a similar law in the UK that predates the new legislation in California, and we’ve already embraced it. And if other places in the world want to eliminate persuasive design and predatory data harvesting from children’s products, we say bring it on.
The way we design our apps is intentional and if you’ve used any of them, you’ve probably noticed a bit of friction when you first sign up. It’s there on purpose; apps for children need to include safeguards, so there are a few extra steps there to protect everyone. We believe it’s something that parents need to embrace, because it makes technology healthier and better for children.
At the end of the day, new laws like the one in California are something of a pressure test for existing companies. Of course it’s a challenge to change tack and embrace a different way of doing things. It’s difficult for Big Tech to make changes that will inevitably impact their bottom line—but when those changes will help protect children, that decision should be a no-brainer.
A deeper dive
Here are a few helpful resources in case you want to really dig into today's topic:
NetChoice is making a lot of claims about how this new law has the potential to harm children, threaten privacy and violate consumer rights. Here’s a good rundown of some of the issues they’ve raised, as well as arguments debunking them. One example: opponents of the law say it will force companies to confirm every users age by collecting government IDs or biometric data. In reality, the law “asks platforms to reasonably estimate users' ages by sorting users into likely age bands. It also specifies that platforms should use existing data to do so. (This method is not only possible, but platforms use age estimation to target advertising).”
There is a lot happening developmentally for children, tweens and teens—which is why it’s so important that the technology they use every day is thoughtfully designed. A recent study concluded that social media use is linked to changes in teens’ brains, though the cause isn’t clear. Though the sample size was small, frequent social media use was associated with increased sensitivity to peer feedback. I’m not convinced about cause-and-effect just yet, but it’s clear to me that technology needs to be thoughtfully designed for users’ whose brains are rapidly changing.
TL;DR
Too long; didn't read. It shouldn't be a full-time job to keep up on industry news, so here is a mercifully quick summary of some other notable developments:
Sometimes it feels like kids are just born tech-savvy. They seem to find work-arounds for parental controls almost as fast as you can put them in place. I enjoyed this relatable article from tech expert Joel Santo Domingo about his saga trying to stop his 13-year-old from gaming into the wee hours of the night. As he explains, it was tricky to find the right solution, because his son was easily able to skirt so many of the options out there.
I recently wrote about ChatGPT, a new AI bot that is capable of producing college-level essays based on user prompts. This new technology is cool, but it also has a lot of educators concerned about the possibility of students enlisting artificial intelligent in order to complete assignments. Recently, New York City schools banned both students and teachers from using the platform—unless it’s specifically to study AI. While I understand their concern, I think a blanket-ban on technology is probably misguided. I’d rather see schools try to teach kids to use the platform responsibly.
And Lastly
Here are a few more pieces of original writing from me and my team—just in case you're keen for more:
If your kids are into gaming, you’ve probably heard of Fortnite. Here’s a quick rundown from my team of everything parents need to know to keep children safe while they play.
And while we’re on the topic of gaming, here are some great tips for getting the most out of video games together as a family.