Over 80% of parents, nearly 70% of youths back age-based social media access: MDDI

Through a series of public engagements, the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) found that more than 80 per cent of parents and nearly 70 per cent of youths supported the Government's proposed tiered approach to social media access for children.

In a media factsheet accompanying the release of the Infocomm Media and Development Authority's (IMDA) inaugural Online Safety Assessment Report on Saturday (Oct 24), the ministry said that the findings emerged from engagements with over 2,000 parents and youth from June to August this year.

According to MDDI, the engagements included focus group discussions, school dialogues, and a survey on CrowdTaskSG — a government platform that allows citizens to share feedback and ideas with government agencies.

But neither parents nor youths in Singapore favoured an outright ban on social media for children, MDDI noted, adding that both groups felt that education, digital literacy and graduated access would be more sustainable than blanket restrictions.

"Parents felt that children should be gradually introduced to online platforms so that they can learn to navigate social media in a safer environment.

"Some youth also said that overly restrictive measures risk a 'forbidden fruit' effect, making social media more appealing," said MDDI, summing up the segments' feedback.

Illustrating this, it cited one youth participant who said that activities were becoming increasingly tech-reliant and might necessitate the use of social media.

Parents also told the ministry that controlled access helps children gradually learn to navigate social media responsibly.

Age-appropriate access

Meanwhile, the support for age-appropriate access to social media among both segments was premised on the common view that children and teenagers are more vulnerable to online harms, MDDI said.

However, they felt that access should still support educational needs and the development of digital literacy.

It also noted that youths generally supported greater access to social media from age 16, when young people were viewed as having greater maturity and capacity to manage their social media use independently.

Some parents and youths also expressed caution against relying solely on age to determine the maturity of young users, MDDI said.

It shared that nearly 80 per cent of parents agreed that age verification and/or age estimation should be implemented, while emphasising the importance of safeguarding users' privacy and not collecting excessive personal data.

Age verification refers to the verification of an individual’s age or confirmation that an individual is above a certain age, for example, using a verified source of identity documentation such as a passport or driving licence, to confirm a user’s age with a high degree of certainty.

Age estimation refers to the estimation of the likely age or age range of users, including through the use of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning technology, and facial age analysis algorithms.

And while both parents and youths alike acknowledged that no measure would be entirely foolproof, they too agreed that age verification was a more viable option than age estimation or self-declaration of age.

Key concerns on social media use

The top shared concern among both segments was screen addiction and overuse, with this being the top concern for youths and the second-highest-ranked concern among parents.

The top concern among parents is inappropriate content, at 84 per cent, but this ranked at just 37 per cent among youths.

On addictive use and unwanted content, MDDI stated that parents have showed strong support for safeguards to reduce such risks, although views on how measures should be implemented were more varied.

The ministry also noted broad support for disabling algorithmic feeds, though some also pointed out their value in their ability to surface educational content.

"Parents generally supported daily screen-time limits, but preferred the flexibility to adjust these based on their children’s needs. Youth were similarly concerned about fixed and rigid limits, noting that these could restrict legitimate uses such as schoolwork and extracurricular activities."

Legislation to be tabled in 2027

MDDI pointed out that across the engagements, parents and youths agreed that online safety for children is a shared responsibility across the government, social media platforms, parents and children themselves.

It said that the findings reinforce the Government's proposed age-appropriate access approach and platform adjustments to enable young people to benefit from technology, while putting stronger protections in place for younger users.

The ministry will next introduce legislation in 2027, with a view to strengthen safeguards for young social media users, focusing on age assurance and safer platform features.

It plans to have social media platforms implement effective age assurance measures, in accordance with obligations under the Personal Data Protection Act, so that safeguards meant for young users can be applied.

The ministry is also looking at making social media safer-by-design for teenagers, including restrictions on inappropriate content, unwanted contact, and platform features such as autoplay and daily screen-time limits.

通过一系列公众参与活动，数字发展和信息部 (MDDI) 发现，超过 80% 的家长和近 70% 的青少年支持政府提出的针对儿童社交媒体访问的分级方法。

在周六（10 月 24 日）发布的新加坡资讯通信媒体发展局 (IMDA) 首份《网络安全评估报告》的媒体情况说明书中，该部门表示，调查结果来自今年 6 月至 8 月期间与 2000 多名家长和青少年的交流。

据 MDDI 称，这些活动包括焦点小组讨论、学校对话以及在 CrowdTaskSG（一个允许公民与政府机构分享反馈和想法的政府平台）上进行的调查。

但新加坡的家长和青少年都不赞成彻底禁止儿童使用社交媒体，MDDI指出，这两个群体都认为教育、数字素养和循序渐进的访问权限比一刀切的限制更具可持续性。

家长们认为应该循序渐进地引导孩子接触网络平台，以便他们能够在更安全的环境中学习如何使用社交媒体。

MDDI总结了各群体的反馈意见，称“一些年轻人还表示，过于严格的限制措施可能会产生‘禁果效应’，使社交媒体更具吸引力”。

为了说明这一点，报告引用了一位青年参与者的话，他说，各项活动越来越依赖科技，可能需要使用社交媒体。

家长们还告诉教育部，控制访问权限有助于孩子逐步学会负责任地使用社交媒体。

适合年龄的访问

与此同时，MDDI表示，这两个群体都支持以适合年龄的方式访问社交媒体，其依据是人们普遍认为儿童和青少年更容易受到网络伤害。

但是，他们认为网络接入仍然应该满足教育需求和数字素养的发展。

报告还指出，青少年普遍支持从 16 岁开始更多地使用社交媒体，因为人们认为青少年在这个年龄段具有更大的成熟度和能力来独立管理他们的社交媒体使用。

MDDI表示，一些家长和青少年也对仅凭年龄来判断年轻用户的成熟度表示谨慎。

调查显示，近 80% 的家长同意实施年龄验证和/或年龄估算，同时强调保护用户隐私和不收集过多个人数据的重要性。

年龄验证是指对个人年龄进行验证，或确认个人已超过特定年龄，例如，使用经过验证的身份证明文件（如护照或驾驶执照）来高度确定地确认用户的年龄。

年龄估计是指估计用户的可能年龄或年龄范围，包括利用人工智能（AI）、机器学习技术和面部年龄分析算法。

虽然家长和青少年都承认没有任何措施能够完全万无一失，但他们也一致认为，年龄验证比年龄估计或自我声明年龄更可行。

社交媒体使用方面的主要问题

两个群体共同关注的首要问题是屏幕成瘾和过度使用，这是青少年最关心的问题，也是家长们第二关心的问题。

家长最担心的是内容不当，占比高达 84%，但青少年中只有 37% 的人对此表示担忧。

关于成瘾性使用和不良内容，MDDI 表示，家长们对采取措施降低此类风险表示了强烈的支持，尽管对于如何实施这些措施的看法则更加多样化。

该部还注意到，禁用算法推送得到了广泛的支持，尽管也有人指出算法推送在呈现教育内容方面具有价值。

“家长们普遍支持限制每日屏幕时间，但更倾向于根据孩子的需要灵活调整这些时间。青少年也同样担心固定且僵化的限制，他们指出这些限制可能会妨碍孩子进行诸如学校作业和课外活动等正当的屏幕使用。”

将于2027年提交的立法

MDDI 指出，在与家长和青少年的交流中，他们一致认为，儿童网络安全是政府、社交媒体平台、家长和儿童自身共同的责任。

报告称，这些调查结果强化了政府提出的适合年龄的访问方式和平台调整方案，使年轻人能够从技术中受益，同时为年轻用户提供更强有力的保护。

该部将于 2027 年推出立法，旨在加强对年轻社交媒体用户的保护，重点是年龄保证和更安全的平台功能。

它计划让社交媒体平台按照《个人数据保护法》规定的义务，实施有效的年龄保证措施，以便能够对年轻用户实施保护措施。

该部门还在考虑从设计上使社交媒体对青少年更加安全，包括限制不当内容、不必要的联系以及自动播放和每日屏幕时间限制等平台功能。