"Because of games, we have more children who look human but have the brains of beasts, and they are dying."
The impact of this statement at a forum on internet addiction prevention in March 2011 was significant. About a month later, the "game shutdown law," which had been publicly debated since 2004, finally passed the National Assembly under the rationale of "protecting adolescents' right to sleep." Online gaming was blocked for minors under 16 from midnight to 6 a.m. However, controversy persisted. The gaming industry pushed back strongly, critics condemned the infringement on personal freedom, and the law was rendered ineffective through workaround connections. The shutdown law, implemented with great difficulty, was officially abolished on January 1, 2022, after just 10 years.
Today, social networking services (SNS) have replaced games in captivating young people. The harms are far more severe. SNS use leads to various crimes including cyberbullying, sexual exploitation, and addiction, even claiming young lives. Among governments grappling with this issue, Australia was the first to prescribe a "drastic remedy." Starting January 10, Australia will become the first country in the world to implement a law completely banning SNS use for minors under 16. Major platforms including Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and Facebook face fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars (approximately 48.3 billion won) if they fail to block access for minors under 16. More countries are joining this trend. Denmark has announced legislation to ban SNS use for those under 15, while Norway, the United Kingdom, France, and Malaysia are pursuing similar regulations. The European Parliament passed a resolution setting the minimum age for SNS use at 16. Bills restricting adolescent SNS use have also been introduced in Korea's National Assembly. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, announcing SNS regulations in a parliamentary speech last month, said, "We have unleashed a monster on our children."
However, mandatory SNS bans could cause side effects as significant as their immediate benefits. Setting aside industrial impact and effectiveness, we cannot rule out the possibility that young people accustomed to online communication may become isolated and driven underground. This is why we must all pay attention to Australia's bold "experiment."
