WHEN DOES THE ACCOUNTABILITY BEGIN? Take It Down specifically seeks to help minors – a group that’s more susceptible to unsafe environments. “The digital world was not designed with child safety in mind,” explains Mie. But as she points out, “how can you protect a child if you don’t sword; some forms of assurance require legal documents or biometrics. While academics and policymakers strive for solutions, child protection is undoubtedly a work in progress. No matter the niche, these issues beg the question: should platforms be held responsible for users’ actions? In an ideal world, the answer is a resounding yes. But in reality, the blame often shifts to the victims of online safety issues rather than the know it’s a child?” Age assurance is one way, but this is another double-edged enablers. “Tech companies can do more, but it requires the governments to be brave,” says Mie. While nations have started to push back against big tech, efforts are slow. Until public and private sectors show eagerness to protect people, it’s down to users to do it themselves.
pertaining to online safety, especially when it comes to minors. Revenge porn and deepfake scandals abound, raising concerns about legality and consent. Moira Donegan in The Guardian calls deepfake pornography an ‘assault on consent.’ “The non- consent is the point; the
humiliation is the point”, she writes. And she raises important questions: “How will viewers know the difference between fact and AI-generated fiction? How can non-consensual material be removed when the internet moves so much faster than regulation?” Targets of revenge porn have almost no means of protection, but this is changing. Take It Down, operated by the US National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and funded by Meta, is a tool that lets minors remove their explicit content from the internet. While it’s far from perfect, the tool protects users’ privacy by requesting a digital fingerprint (‘hash’) rather than the image or video in question. As of February, Facebook and Instagram – along with Yubo, OnlyFans and Pornhub – have agreed to participate. Take It Down claims to work with deepfakes and other AI-generated content, as well as original images.
THE DIGITAL WORLD WAS NOT DESIGNED WITH CHILD SAFETY IN MIND. HOW CAN YOU PROTECT A CHILD IF YOU DON’T KNOW IT IS ONE?
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