Age verification for porn

The Australian Parliamentary Committee has announced its support for the implementation of online age verification for online pornography in Australia, recognising this as critical to the wellbeing and basic human rights of children.

Concerns have been rising that sexting and pornography are rife. Studies have indicated that most students have seen explicit images or videos by grade seven, and there is an increasing number of young children with porn addiction. Access to the internet and therefore to porn, is not just in the home, it’s everywhere, and the Australian government has made it clear that this is not a problem that parents and kids can solve alone.

Age verification is of course, not a safety net on its own. To be effective, it needs parental controls or filtering, child settings, family digital habits (like no devices in bedrooms or loos), sex and relationships education, and talking, talking, talking to our kids.

Here at Be In Touch, we are working closely with the SA Law Reform Commission, advocating for more stringent regulation of devices through which South African children can intentionally or inadvertently access porn.

Add in a family sit down to agree your own family digital habits alliance, and you are well on your way in this digital parenting journey.

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