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Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

abc.net.au

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Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#11

Post by chii »

budududuroiu wrote: post #5

If Australia genuinely wanted to improve the lives of its children, it would first tackle the loopholes in its child support scheme [1]. But then again, as with Chat Control and other such schemes, “save the children” is used to usher in breaking of all citizens’ privacy. I bet Aus is insanely jealous of China’s mandatory ID checks on their superapps [1] https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/oct/08/single-paren...

Whenever a measure is instroduced in law to austensibly "protect the children", it's just merely an appeal to emotion and in fact, is not meant to do what is being advertised.

It certainly is meant to increase the power of law enforcement, gov't overreach, and intrusion. It is used to add a chilling effect on any sort of dissent.

The same could be said for any measures to protect you from "the terrorists".

Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#12

Post by vkou »

hedora wrote: post #3
jimbob45 wrote: post #2

Why not simply pass a law to limit company liability in the case that a minor sees something undesirable? Why shouldn’t the onus be on the parents to parent?

All of these laws (the US has some now) are designed to set up a censorship regime that can control speech or oppress undesirable groups (Project 2025 calls out LGBTQ+, for example). The age verification also will inevitably let the authorities create a list of adults to persecute.

> The age verification also will inevitably let the authorities create a list of adults to persecute.

If your government has slid that far down the dystopian shithole scale, why would they care if the person they are persecuting is an adult or a child?

Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#13

Post by ta8645 »

vkou wrote: post #12
hedora wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All of these laws (the US has some now) are designed to set up a censorship regime that can control speech or oppress undesirable groups (Project 2025 calls out LGBTQ+, for example). The age verification also will inevitably let the authorities create a list of adults to persecute.

> The age verification also will inevitably let the authorities create a list of adults to persecute. If your government has slid that far down the dystopian shithole scale, why would they care if the person they are persecuting is an adult or a child?

They don't. That's just a thin veneer of "legitimacy" so they don't have to admit the real reasons, explicitly.

Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#14

Post by dav43 »

Australian politics is very much in favour of throwing around a lot of Red herrings. Eg get the conversation, media and public focussed on unimportant issues as a way to distract from the fact they are incompetent to deal with big issues.

Grew up in NSW for 25 years. Nothing has changed. A few extra toll roads.

Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#15

Post by BLKNSLVR »

budududuroiu wrote: post #5

If Australia genuinely wanted to improve the lives of its children, it would first tackle the loopholes in its child support scheme [1]. But then again, as with Chat Control and other such schemes, “save the children” is used to usher in breaking of all citizens’ privacy. I bet Aus is insanely jealous of China’s mandatory ID checks on their superapps [1] https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/oct/08/single-paren...

I was having a similar conversation yesterday, and my stance is that the political grand-standing like this is worse than doing nothing because it gives the populace the sense that something is being done, although very little is likely to change. Resources are being applied far from optimally. Funding that could be useful is being spent on the useless. As such, it's taking things in the wrong direction whilst still costing more than what previously existed and also impinging on other areas of literally everyone else's lives.

I believe that acting locally, funding child protection services, providing more boots on the ground, is actual progress (I mean, these organisations are literally called "child protection services", who else better, then?)

I've mentioned this a number of times before: my wife is a teacher and therefore has 'mandatory reporting' responsibilities. The frustration is that, with the resources currently available, they're only able to intervene where a child's life is in immediate danger.

I'm not sure if the bar could be any lower.

I should also make the disclaimer that what I know is second-hand information from my wife, and may be out of date and / or biased due to frustrations due to the misalignment between 'mandatory reporting' and 'what can actually be done'.

Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#16

Post by SXX »

budududuroiu wrote: post #5

If Australia genuinely wanted to improve the lives of its children, it would first tackle the loopholes in its child support scheme [1]. But then again, as with Chat Control and other such schemes, “save the children” is used to usher in breaking of all citizens’ privacy. I bet Aus is insanely jealous of China’s mandatory ID checks on their superapps [1] https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/oct/08/single-paren...

Well, childcare is easy to measure. It's easy to see whatever it sufficient or not so it's a bad topic for politicians.

But you can “save the children” as many times as you want and there will always be another thing to save them from. And it's impossible to measure because obviously you can't go and ask children what they do on internet or what inappropriate content they found intentionally or not.

So perfect topic to work with even without conspiracy to invade grown ups privacy.

Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#17

Post by theshackleford »

cadamsdotcom wrote: post #9

The sense of impotence in the comments is palpable. What can we - the people - do to make our discontent heard?

The majority of the Australian population would agree with the introduction of such laws. It is the minority (such as those of us here) who disagree. So the people have been "heard" and they are getting what they want. It's the rest of us who suffer.

Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#18

Post by bigger_cheese »

simmo9000 wrote: post #10
cadamsdotcom wrote: post #9

The sense of impotence in the comments is palpable. What can we - the people - do to make our discontent heard?

Australia has "the vote" for that.

In my opinion the most likely way it gets torpedoed is by Trump threatening the Aus Gov over trying to regulate US Tech companies.

Feels like Albanese is walking on eggshells at the moment trying to get Trump not to cancel AUKUS, not ramp up tarrifs etc.

Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#19

Post by Traubenfuchs »

cadamsdotcom wrote: post #9

The sense of impotence in the comments is palpable. What can we - the people - do to make our discontent heard?

Theoretically: Vote for parties that are not actively hostile towards the people.

Practically: nothing.

Democracy has largely failed and in many countries you can, at best, pick between right wing assholes that work against your best interests and leftwing idiots that work against your best interests.

Re: Australia is introducing age checks for search engines like Google

#20

Post by dottjt »

dav43 wrote: post #14

Australian politics is very much in favour of throwing around a lot of Red herrings. Eg get the conversation, media and public focussed on unimportant issues as a way to distract from the fact they are incompetent to deal with big issues. Grew up in NSW for 25 years. Nothing has changed. A few extra toll roads.

I would refrain from referring to it as incompetence, as I feel that ignores the true nature of the system.

The problem is that the Australian political system needs to appease to the centre. That's how parties get into power. As long as that's the case, it doesn't leave a whole lot of room to meaningfully tackle the problems plaguing the country (in particular, housing).

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