The Spanish government is proposing new age verification rules for accessing online pornography in the form of apps that would authenticate a user’s age without revealing their identity to websites.
Conservatives argue that pornography should be treated as a moral issue, but that the ruling PSOE government has come up with a technological solution in the form of a proposal that appears to be genuinely in the public interest.
The project was developed by the Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD) and the National Currency Stamp Factory. Government spokesperson Pilar Alegría said on Tuesday that it had already been piloted and was “tested in major browsers, and its main purpose is to prevent minors from accessing adult content.” ” he said.
In the Internet age, measures to prevent adolescents from accessing adult (and possibly immoral) content remain controversial. People are used to identifying themselves to verify their age when purchasing cigarettes or alcohol in stores, but privacy rights become an issue when requesting the same information online.
At the heart of the issue is data security. Store clerks don’t keep records of who buys beer, even if they can easily identify the purchaser, but online data is inevitably stored in a database. Internet users are well aware that when they share information digitally, they can potentially lose control of that information. Despite promises of security, it can and often does get hacked, sold, and surveilled.
Recent EU-level proposals to combat online pedophile content have drawn opposition after it became clear that the directive was likely to lead to mass surveillance of citizens by governments.
Concern about the social harm that pornography poses, particularly to young people, is widespread and typically transcends traditional left-right political lines. The question of how to address the problem without violating individual rights remains difficult.
In this context, Spain’s proposal is particularly interesting.
Spain has already introduced digital identification measures, and optional digital identification can help you complete official documentation procedures online. Currently, governments are proposing digital identity cards that protect a person’s identity while verifying age.
Currently, websites that offer age-restricted content, such as alcohol sales or pornography, require users to self-identify their age before continuing to navigate the site. Unsurprisingly, this rule has proven completely ineffective in keeping young people away from websites offering adult content.
Like a regular digital ID, it essentially functions as an application that is downloaded to a device and deployed as needed. An anonymous certificate proves that a user is over 18 years old, but the user’s girlfriend ID and other data are not shared with the provider. To obtain a certificate, you will need a national identity card, passport, or driving license. On devices other than phones, such as computers or consoles, the same app issues her QR code, which the device reads to confirm that the user is authorized to access it.
All websites hosting content covered by this law will be required to implement age verification mechanisms. Non-compliant websites will be investigated by his AEPD and will be subject to fines that can reach 2-3% of annual revenue.
When AEPD explained the system last month, it said it could also be used to restrict access to social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, but the government has not said it has any plans to do so.
The government announced on Tuesday that its anonymous age verification system will be ready for public release “as expected before the summer” and that it is preparing “comprehensive legislation for minors on the internet”. No further details were given, except that the bill would include a multidisciplinary strategy across “the areas of education, digital skills and equality.”
political controversy
There are also questions about which political party gets credit for passing regulations with broad public consensus and clear social benefits.
This was revealed by an official from the main opposition party, Partido Popular (PP). Eldebate He stated that his election platform had included measures to counter the harm caused to young people by the Internet.
“If they want to imitate us, that’s fine, but they need to copy our entire proposal because the problem is much more complex. Minors don’t just have pornography. “We must be protected from all dangerous content on the network,” PP leader Alberto Nuñez Feijó publicly insisted.
Similarly, PP officials said that Mr. Sánchez’s party, PSOE, has launched a PP motion in the Senate calling on the government to protect minors by taking concrete steps to guarantee their safety in the digital environment. He emphasized that he refused to support it.
While the PP was happy to praise the PSOE’s proposals, officials said they hoped the application they said they were developing would “work better than the coronavirus radar and the Department for Equality’s domestic operations application”. added.