Manufacturers of digital products will have to systematically install parental control software on all devices used by children. A way to fight against cyberbullying and exposure to pornography.

Manufacturers of digital products will have to systematically install parental control software on all devices used by children. A way to fight against cyberbullying and exposure to pornography.

How to fight against cyberbullying, children’s addiction to social networks and their exposure to pornography or sensitive or violent content online? Four years ago, in 2019, Emmanuel Macron promised to impose and automate parental controls by default on all digital devices used by children. It is now done! Jean-Noël Barrot, Minister Delegate for the Digital Transition, thus announced the publication in the Official Journal July 13, 2023 of the decree implementing the law of deputy Bruno Studer (Renaissance), supported by the Government and adopted in March 2022. The decree aims to strengthen parental control over the means of access to the Internet. It makes mandatory the installation by default – but not the activation by default – of parental control software on all digital devices used by children and adolescents, namely smartphones, computers, digital tablets , televisions, computers and game consoles. The activation of this device must be offered free of charge to the user when the equipment is put into service for the first time. Manufacturers have until July 2024 to comply with the new legislation.

Parental control: tools to monitor and restrict your children

Since July 13, 2023, law n° 2022-300 of March 2, 2022 aimed at strengthening parental control over the means of access to the Internet has come into force. As a reminder, article 1^er of the bill provides “the obligation for manufacturers to install a parental control system and to offer the user its activation when the device is first put into service”with a view to harmonizing the various tools made available to “guaranteeing the same quality standard to all households”. The objective being that “Equipment or services allowing access to the Internet are subject to reinforced obligations in order to make the use of control devices by parents more systematic, simple and user-friendly”.

In a communicated release, the National Frequency Agency (ANFR) explains that “the activation of this device must be offered free of charge to the user when the equipment is put into service for the first time”. Concretely, parental control software must be installed by default on all digital devices and devices covered by the law, but it would still be up to parents to decide whether or not to activate these solutions to protect their children. It will be up to the ANFR to monitor manufacturers’ compliance with this constraint. She “may take samples of equipment from places of sale”. “If during an assessment, the agency finds that the terminal equipment does not comply with the technical specifications laid down, it gives formal notice to the economic operator concerned to take all the appropriate corrective measures to bring the equipment into conformity, withdraw it of the market or call them back within a period that it determines”, thus indicates the decree. If the manufacturer does not comply with the formal notice within the time allowed, the ANFR may impose an administrative fine on it. A report on the state of the market will be published by the end of the year.

There are plenty of parental control services and software out there. We can for example cite Family Safety, the free tool from Microsoft integrated as standard in Windows (see our practical guide), or Family Link, the mobile application from Google. Other applications, such as streaming platforms or social networks, also have integrated parental control functions. This is for example the case of Snapchat with its Family Center or TikTok. The problem is that you have to find these functions in the settings or take the time to install a dedicated application. Also, the objective of the decree is to facilitate the application of parental control, by allowing from the first use of the device to manage the parameters for limiting screen time or even blocking content.

Parental control: many measures for the protection of minors

The Government takes the issue of the protection of minors seriously and has introduced several measures in this direction. Thus, the National Assembly voted in March 2023 a law aimed at protecting the image rights of children, whose parents post photos and videos on social networks – which can be harmful to them afterwards, but also feed pedocrime networks (see our article) – while Parliament adopted in June the establishment of the numerical majority at 15 years for social networks. On the other hand, concerning the blocking of pornographic sites, which do not really filter their access to minors, the situation is at a standstill and we must await the decision of the Council of State on the question (see our article).

On this subject of cyber-harassment, often linked to school bullying – two phenomena which can have more than dramatic consequences – the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron announced a series of measures so that, in his own words, “shame changes sides”. “We are going to strengthen the houses for adolescents, the reception points for young people, the physical places with people who are there to receive the word and to listen everywhere in the territory”explained the Head of State in 2021. In addition to 3018, the national number against digital violence – free, anonymous and confidential, this number is accessible by telephone, live chat on 3018.fr as well as by Messenger and WhatsApp – , the Government had set up a 3018 application, allowing victims and witnesses to send a screenshot of harassment situations so that they are better supported. Finally, to help children “to make better use of digital”Emmanuel Macron had announced the launch of a “experimentation by delivering a certification in digital awareness to students from 6^e from the start of the 2022 school year, with the idea, then, of generalizing from the following school year”. According a study conducted by Caisse d’Epargne, in collaboration with the e-Enfance association20% of children aged 8 to 18 have already been victims of cyberbullying.