DY PUSHES FOR STRONGER SAFEGUARDS TO PROTECT CHILDREN FROM DANGERS OF SOCIAL MEDIA

HOUSE Speaker Faustino “Bojie” G. Dy III is pushing for stronger safeguards to protect Filipino children from the growing dangers of social media, saying government must ensure that technology serves the healthy development of young people instead of exposing them to harm.

Together with Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos, Dy filed House Bill No. 9965 or the proposed Children’s Social Media Safety Act, which seeks to establish the country’s first comprehensive framework regulating children’s access to and use of social media platforms.

“Nakikita natin na malaking bahagi ang social media sa araw-araw na buhay kaya mas malaki rin ang ating responsibilidad na tiyaking ligtas ang ating mga anak habang gumagamit nito. If we will allow Filipino children to explore the online world, they should be given sufficient protections,” said the Speaker from Isabela.

The House chief said the measure recognizes that while digital platforms offer opportunities for learning and communication, they also expose children to cyberbullying, harmful content, online exploitation, addiction, anxiety, sleep disruption, and other risks that existing laws do not adequately address.

“Kung may batas tayong nagpoprotekta sa mga bata sa paaralan, sa lansangan, at sa ating mga komunidad, dapat mayroon din tayong malinaw na proteksiyon habang sila ay gumagamit ng social media,” he said.

“Responsibilidad nating siguraduhin na ang teknolohiya ay para sa kabutihan ng bata, hindi nagiging sanhi ng panganib sa kanilang paglaki,”  he added.

The proposed measure adopts an age-based framework for children’s use of social media. Children below 13 years old would be prohibited from creating, maintaining, or using social media accounts.

Platforms would be required to implement effective age verification systems, immediately disable prohibited accounts, and prevent repeated account creation intended to circumvent the law.

For children aged 13 to below 18, social media access would only be allowed with verifiable parental or guardian consent and active supervision.

Platforms must also periodically verify age and parental consent, while automatically restricting access once such consent is withdrawn.

The bill likewise requires social media companies to provide parents and guardians with tools to monitor their children’s online activity, manage privacy settings, impose screen-time limits, restrict interactions, and withdraw consent whenever necessary.

Child accounts must also carry the highest privacy and safety settings by default, with restrictions on geolocation sharing, financial transactions, and the collection of biometric or sensitive personal data.

Dy explained that the proposal is not meant to keep children away from technology, but to encourage healthier and safer digital engagement.

“Hindi natin ipinagkakait sa kabataan ang teknolohiya. Malaki ang naitutulong nito sa pag-aaral, komunikasyon, at pagkatuto. Ang layunin natin ay tiyaking naaayon ang paggamit nito sa kanilang edad at magkaroon sila ng sapat na gabay ng magulang. Habang lumalawak ang digital world, kailangan ding patibayin ang proteksiyon para sa ating mga anak,” he said.

HB 9965 also seeks to regulate the algorithms and digital systems used by social media platforms by requiring them to prevent the promotion of harmful content, detect and limit children’s exposure to such material, avoid manipulative platform designs, and remove artificially generated or altered content that falsely depicts individuals or is likely to mislead users.

The measure also mandates greater transparency on how algorithms recommend content and requires meaningful human oversight over digital systems affecting children’s safety.

To promote responsible digital citizenship, the bill directs the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), in coordination with the Department of Education, to integrate digital literacy and ethical social media use into the K to 12 curriculum.

It also provides for training programs for teachers and awareness campaigns for parents and children.

The proposal further requires local government units to establish device-free community spaces and organize sports, arts, and civic activities that encourage children to spend more time engaging with their communities rather than relying excessively on social media.

Under the measure, the DICT would be authorized to monitor compliance, issue cease-and-desist orders, and coordinate enforcement with the National Telecommunications Commission and the National Privacy Commission.

Social media platforms that repeatedly violate the law could face fines ranging from P5 million to P50 million and, in cases of repeated and serious violations, temporary restriction of access or prohibition from operating in the Philippines, subject to due process.

“Given the reach of social media and the internet, protecting children can no longer rest solely on the shoulders of parents. Tungkulin din ng pamahalaan na tiyakin na ang mga social media platform ay may pananagutan sa paggawa ng mas ligtas na digital environment para sa ating mga kabataan. Sa panahon ng mabilis na pag-unlad ng teknolohiya, ang kapakanan ng bawat batang Pilipino ang dapat maging pangunahing batayan ng ating mga polisiya,” Dy said.