"Stop Algorithms and Block Unknown DMs"...An Minseok Urges Youth SNS Reform

Proposal of 'Three Major Reforms' at the National Assembly
"Institutional Safeguards Needed More Than Unconditional Bans"

An Minseok, Superintendent of Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education, declared the 'Three Major Reforms of Youth SNS' at the National Assembly briefing room on the morning of September 29, urging improvements in relevant systems and legislation to create a safe and healthy digital environment for youth.

The 'Three Major Reforms of Youth SNS' include: ▲Stopping Algorithms, ▲SNS Safety Fence, and ▲Strengthening Responsibilities of SNS Providers.

Superintendent An Minseok Declares 'Three Major Reforms for Youth SNS' at Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education

The 'Stopping Algorithms (Self-Regulation Rest Mode)' measure calls for temporarily suspending addictive recommendation algorithms and imposing a daily usage limit when children and adolescents under the age of 14 use SNS continuously for a certain period of time.

Additionally, the 'SNS Safety Fence' would introduce a default setting that blocks individual messages (DMs) from unknown outsiders, except for those allowed such as friends, on youth accounts. This measure aims to proactively prevent access to cyber sex crimes, deepfakes, drug-related, and gambling offenses.

The reforms also include strengthening platform companies' age verification procedures and imposing substantial legal responsibilities and sanctions on companies that fail to fulfill their duty to protect youth, under the 'Strengthening Provider Responsibility' provision.

Superintendent An stated, "Smartphones and SNS are already deeply embedded in the daily lives and learning of children, so banning them unconditionally is not the answer," adding, "The National Assembly and the education sector must work together to establish institutional safeguards so that children can regulate their use on their own and be protected from the risks of crime." He called for legislative action.

The declaration ceremony was attended by Assemblyman Kim Namkook of the Democratic Party of Korea (Ansan-gap, Gyeonggi), Assemblyman Kim Jaewon of the New Reform Party (proportional representative), Song Suyeon, Chairman of the Teachers' Union Federation, Lee Gun, Head of the Phone-Free Initiative at the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education, Choi Seungil, former principal of Hwaseong High School, and parents, all of whom read the 'Declaration of the Three Major Reforms of Youth SNS' together.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.