A public consultation carried out by the federal government on measuring the age of users on the internet pointed out that it is not possible to adopt a single, rigid rule for websites or applications to carry out this check.
The suggestions indicated that it is necessary to define a method that is stricter as the risk posed by websites or applications increases. An adult forum, for example, would need more rigorous vetting than a recipe site.
Published last week, the result of civil society contributions was presented this Wednesday (11), in São Paulo, and the demonstrations indicated that A mere declaration of age, saying that you are over 18 years old, is insufficient to contain risk situations.
>> Follow the channel Brazil Agency on WhatsApp
The public consultation was carried out between October 15th and November 14th last year and collected 70 contributions made by individuals, companies, academic institutions and civil society entities.
According to the director of Security and Risk Prevention in the Digital Environment of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, Ricardo de Lins e Horta, the consultation made it clear that it is necessary to think about double-layer models for measuring the age of users, especially in applications that involve risks of exposure to inappropriate content for children and adolescents.
“Age measurement is here to stay,” said Horta.
“We have observed, in the government, the process of this [a necessidade de aferição de idade] it is already given. This will happen all over the world, the question is how”, he highlighted.
Age verification is the process of verifying or proving a user’s real age before granting access to certain content or digital services.
One of the best-known forms of measurement is self-declaration, in which the user himself declares his age group, usually through a click. But there are also other ways that can be adopted, such as the use of biometrics or trusted digital credentials.
The purpose of this age measurement is to prevent children and adolescents from being exposed to content that is not permitted for their age or to criminal content that explores images of child abuse and sexual exploitation.
“If I don’t let my children go to a certain place, why don’t we do the same with the internet?” asked Horta.
Concerns
The presentation was held at the event that marked the Safe Internet Daycarried out by Safernet Brasil, the Ponto BR Information and Coordination Center (NIC.br) and the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br).
Horta also highlighted other concerns that need to be resolved. One of them is about who should be responsible for this age verification: family, State or companies.
Another concerns the confidentiality of the data of these children and adolescents, which cannot be used for state or commercial control or for artificial intelligence training without consent.
ECA Digital
The age measurement proposal is under study and should support the drafting of the decree that will regulate the Digital Statute of Children and Adolescents (ECA Digital).
The legislation that comes into force on March 17and the decree that will regulate ECA Digital is being jointly produced between the Ministry of Justice, the Civil House, the Ministry of Human Rights and Citizenship, the Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services and the Communication Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic.
With regulations on this topic, what is expected is the creation of a culture of protection for children in which a website that offers risky content always requires a verification step.
“Age measurement is a very important layer of protection that did not exist,” said Horta. “But it alone will not solve the problem of internet security. Age measurement is also not a way to restrict freedom of expression, but a way to adapt an experience to age, which already exists in the physical world”, explained Horta.
