The federal government will require social media platforms to assume a “digital duty of care” for users, according to an announcement from Communications Minister, Michelle Rowland.
In a speech at the Sydney Institute, Rowland said the Albanese government will develop and legislate a legal responsibility for keeping Australians safe will be put on the social media platforms themselves, including obligating platforms to identify and mitigate potential risks to safeguard customers’ mental health.
“To my mind, what’s required is a shift away from reacting to harms by relying on content regulation alone, and moving towards systems-based prevention, accompanied by a broadening of our perspective of what online harms are,” said Rowland.
“Where platforms seriously and systemically breach their duty of care, we will ensure the regulator can draw on strong penalty arrangements,” the former lawyer added, noting that a duty of care is “a common law concept”.
This “duty of care” approach would bring Australia in line to similar actions from the United Kingdom and European Union.
It’s understood the digital duty of care was a key recommendation of an independent review of the Online Safety Act, which was handed to the government weeks ago, and has yet to be released. More information on how a “digital duty of care” will be implemented is expected in the coming weeks.
“To date, the Online Safety Act has been a crucial tool for incentivising digital platforms to remove illegal content, usually applied remedially and case by case. However, it does not, in a fundamental sense, incentivise the design of a safer, healthier, digital platforms ecosystem,” said Rowland.
“This, as part of a growing global effort, will deliver a more systemic and preventative approach to making online services safer and healthier.”
“Where platforms seriously and systemically breach their duty of care we will ensure the regulator can draw on strong penalty arrangements.”
This announcement comes as the government continues to make proposed reforms in the tech and social media space, including the recent confirmation it will move ban on social media for Australians under 16.