Video speech by Viviane Reding
Member of the European Commission responsible for Information Society and Media
Delivered at FOSI's annual conference: "Right and responsibility: Child Protection in a Web 2.0 World, " Washington, D.C., 6th December 2007
Quicktime Movie
Windows Media PlayerLadies and gentlemen,
I am glad to have this opportunity to set out briefly what the European Commission is doing to protect children online, and how we see the responsibilities of different actors in a Web 2.0 world.
In just a few years, the Internet has turned into one of the most dynamic communication tools we've ever had. It facilitates the free flow of information that strengthens democratic processes and stimulates economic growth. It fosters freedom of expression. Obviously, the "flip side" of the coin is its inbuilt possibilities for spreading illegal content and allowing for practices that can be harmful, especially for children.
The protection of children as users of online technologies is of great importance to the European Commission. We have been active both in the regulatory and non regulatory fields, in particular through the Safer Internet Programme which started in 1999.
But both services and technologies evolve, and we must be aware of the new challenges raised by the explosion of social networking sites, online gaming and other interactive services, generally referred to as Web 2.0. I therefore want to congratulate FOSI for focusing its annual event on this issue.
Challenges raised by the Web 2.0
Social networking sites have become very popular in the last couple of years. This can be illustrated by for example the number of visitors to a popular site "MySpace", which increased from 4.9 million in 2005 to 67 million in 2006. At the same time, the age of internet users has decreased. In Europe, 9-10 year old children connect several times per week; 12-14 year olds generally use the Internet daily, often for one to three hours. Internet has become part of their daily lives.
Minors can encounter a number of risks when using social networking sites: bullying, exposure to inappropriate and harmful content, grooming for sexual abuse, exposure to information about anorexia and suicide, just to mention a few. But experts recognise that the biggest threat is to privacy, since children do not always realise that personal details they are providing can be seen and collected by anybody and that this information will remain online and can be circulated forever.
I would also like to give attention to online games, which is the most frequent activity online for children aged 9-10 in Europe. These games are truly interactive, and the use of them raises a number of issues including access to harmful content.
I believe that there are no single or simple solutions to these issues. Whether we are regulators, industry, NGOs, parents or teachers, we must all work together to protect our children.
Government regulation
Regulators have a responsibility in this domain. Through legislation, we have set Europe-wide standards concerning the protection of minors, electronic commerce, privacy and electronic communications and online distribution of child sexual abuse material.
To enforce legislation against child sexual abuse material, international cooperation is particularly important, since this material may be produced in one country, stored in a second and accessed in a third. The INHOPE network of Hotlines is a very concrete example this international cooperation, within Europe, but also with the US, Australia, Canada and Korea. I would like to stress the active participation of the American hotline Cybertipline.
Industry-self regulation
Although legislation is necessary, government regulation should be kept at a minimum. With the rapid changes taking place in the online environment, a co-regulatory approach can be more adaptable and hence more effective than straightforward regulation. Co-regulation should consist in co-operation between the authorities, industry, consumers and other parties concerned about child safety.
I strongly believe that the Internet industry should take a pro-active role in protecting minors using their services. I am a supporter of industry self-regulation regimes where they are broadly accepted by other stakeholders and where they provide for effective enforcement.
Good examples of self-regulation already exist, such as the ICRA labelling system and the Pan-European rating system for games called PEGI. I also consider the agreement signed last February by leading European mobile operators on safer mobile use by younger teenagers and children very promising. It was a result of an initiative taken by the European Commission, which involved fruitful discussions between the industry and child welfare organisations.
In the context of the Web 2.0, industry has a great opportunity to show how it can provide parents, teachers and children with the necessary information and tools to stay safe online. Self-regulation should in particular cover active moderatorship of sites that children use for communication, providing possibilities to report abuse and raising awareness on personal privacy issues.
Need for empowerment of parents and children
Raising the awareness of parents and children is of key importance when most of the online content is generated by users. Through the Safer Internet Programme, the European Union has fostered the creation of a Europe-wide awareness network (INSAFE), which targets parents, teachers and the children themselves. The network runs awareness campaigns in schools and through mass media. Its most visible event is Safer Internet Day, celebrated each year. Safer Internet Day has become a truly international event with 100 organisations in over 40 countries taking part in 2007. The next time it takes place on 12 February 2008 and I invite all of you to join.
In order to share the experiences of European initiatives, including this unique pan-European awareness network, we have organized a Best Practice Forum on child protection during the Internet Governance Forum meeting in Rio de Janeiro last November.
We must continue to raise awareness about the opportunities and risks of new media, especially among parents and children themselves. Where the security of our children is at stake, there can be no room for complacency.
Media literacy
Finally, I would like to stress the importance of focusing on media literacy in this context. In today's information society, in our highly mediatised world, being media literate is extremely important for being active citizens, a key pre-requisite for active participation, just as literacy was at the beginning of the twentieth century. At the same time, media literacy relates to protection and empowerment. Media literate people will be better able to protect themselves and their families from harmful, offensive or undesired content. Media literacy refers to the skills, knowledge and understanding to enable citizens and children in particular to use media effectively. Children and young people would therefore be able to use media freer and with greater curiosity as they will have the instruments to choose what they want to see and evaluate the implications of their choices. For these reasons, the European Commission intends to adopt a Communication on media literacy in the coming months.
Conclusion
Web 2.0 raises new issues, especially concerning privacy, but our approach can be based on the good practices that are already implemented for ensuring child safety online. I consider it to be very useful to gather representatives from the industry and regulators to discuss how to make sure our children are safe with the increased online interactivity. I wish you a very good conference and look forward to learning about its outcome.
