Posted by While many lawmakers are pushing for reforms to restrict children’s time and exposure on chat platforms and virtual reality spaces, Meta just announced they are lowering the age for children to connect with others in Meta’s Horizons World, a virtual reality platform.
Now children between ages 10 and 12 will be able to connect with others in the Horizons virtual environment, though the company’s announcement emphasized this can only happen with parental consent.
In a statement that announced the lowered age restrictions, the tech giant claimed that connecting with friends “is what makes MR [mixed reality] and VR great,” and the company is ready to give preteens the reins to connect through chats and direct calls with the required parental approval.
Meta was quick to highlight the different levels of controls that take place in the process, which include parents approving each contact and follower on a young user’s list. Access to multiplayer mixed reality and virtual experiences must also be given the green light by parents, who are further able to delete any approved contact at any time.
Meta Horizon parent-managed profiles are automatically set on private in an effort to elude online predators, and an age-checking process is designed to present an extra layer of deterrence, although the company did not elaborate on how that age determining process is conducted or enforced.
Nevertheless, a cloud of alleged misconduct and violated privacy policies surrounds the company in claims made as recently as last year by the Federal Trade Commission, who asserts Meta profited from data it collected on its younger users in Instagram and Horizon Worlds.
Opponents of the age reductions fear that relying on parental supervision and exposing children to mostly untested VR experiences bypasses prioritizing child safety in exchange for Meta attracting more users.
Josh Golin, executive director of the nonprofit children’s advocacy group, Fairplay, said Meta’s motives are “clearly driven by the fact that they are trying to compete for a market,” and the actions are “not driven by kids’ needs.”
Is depending on parental involvement an adequate safeguard to protect children from the threat of online predators? Should Meta go further to ensure the safety of minors using Meta’s platforms in the digital world? Keep reading here.