The House of Representatives has approved on third and final reading a bill that would bar children under 13 from having social media accounts, as lawmakers move to make digital spaces safer for Filipino children.
House Bill 11566, or the proposed Safe and Friendly Environment for Kids in Digital Spaces (SAFE KIDS) Act, was approved on Monday, October 12, with 287 votes in favor, 3 against and no abstentions.
What the bill provides
Under the House version, children under 13 would not be allowed to create, hold or use social media accounts, while teenagers aged 13 to under 18 would have restricted access to digital platforms.
Platforms would be required to disable features that are unsafe for teen users, including risky communication tools and features that encourage excessive or compulsive use. The rules would cover both social media and gaming platforms.
The bill would also create a SAFE KIDS Office under the Department of Information and Communications Technology to lead implementation. Digital platforms that fail to meet the safeguards would face penalties.
"Not simply access versus prohibition"
Pasig City Representative Roman Romulo, who co-sponsored the bill and chaired its technical working group, said the measure recognizes that children are already online.
"The concern, therefore, is not whether children should have a place in the digital world. They already do," he said in a statement on Tuesday. "The policy question is therefore not simply one of access versus prohibition."
Next steps
The Senate has its own version, Senate Bill 2424 or the SMART KIDS Act, which sets a stricter restriction covering those 18 and under. A bicameral conference committee will need to reconcile the two versions, particularly their different age thresholds, before the final bill is sent to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for signing.
