Campaigners express alarm that parents and children participating in the government’s consultation on restricting social media access may have their personal data shared with major tech firms like Google and Meta.
Details of the Consultation
The government recently launched ‘Growing up in the online world: a national consultation’ to explore measures protecting children amid rapid technological changes. This includes potential restrictions such as social media bans for under-16s, curfews, or time limits. The initiative targets parents and carers of individuals aged 21 and under, as well as children and young people aged 10 to 21.
Participants must accept the privacy policy of Savanta, the survey platform contractor. This policy indicates that data may be shared with suppliers including Google, LinkedIn, and Meta to enhance services and targeting.
Privacy Concerns Raised
Parents and advocates worry that this setup could expose children’s details to the very companies facing regulation. Harry Amies, founder of the online child protection group Unplug.Scot, which identified the policy language, demands suspension of the consultation until changes occur.
“The discovery that not only parents’ but children’s personal data may be shared with Meta and Google, without their explicit consent or knowledge, is extremely concerning,” Amies stated. “The government needs to urgently change the terms of this consultation to ensure this does not happen.”
Lord Nash, the Conservative peer advocating for an under-16 social media ban, calls the situation “deeply concerning.”
“It has long been clear that this consultation is a gift to big tech, providing cover for delay while the companies mobilise opposition to any meaningful action,” the former schools minister said. “The government now urgently needs to make clear that every parent and child who takes part in this consultation will not have their personal data shared with the very companies they want regulated.”
Nash urges public action at raisetheage.org.uk and support for his amendment to raise the age limit for harmful platforms to 16 immediately.
Bereaved Parents’ Call for Action
Twenty-three bereaved parents, including Esther Ghey—whose 16-year-old daughter Brianna was murdered—press MPs to back an Australia-style under-16 ban. Led by Ellen Roome, whose 14-year-old son Jools Sweeney died attempting an online challenge in 2022, they argue families cannot counter billion-dollar tech giants alone.
“Our children should be here. They should be at school, at home, arguing with their siblings, planning their futures,” the group stated. “Instead, we are left trying to understand how platforms designed and engineered by some of the most powerful companies in the world were allowed to reach into their bedrooms and shape their lives without meaningful protection.”
The parents warn that delays allow tech firms to weaken reforms, leaving children vulnerable to known harms.
Government Response
A DSIT spokesman dismisses the concerns as “utterly absurd.” The policy reference pertains only to basic technical data, like IP addresses, collected if users are logged into platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, or X during the survey—similar to standard practices on major websites.
“It has no connection to, and no impact on, the personal views or details people choose to share to help us make the next steps on online safety policy,” the spokesman clarified.
Upcoming Developments
MPs prepare to debate the under-16 social media ban next week following House of Lords support for an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced the consultation to address backbench pressures, favoring flexible powers over a rigid ban.
Under-16s could face restrictions by summer if measures advance swiftly.
