In an increasingly digital world, Canadians should be able to embrace new technologies with confidence, knowing that they are protected and their personal information is safe online. That is why we are taking action to better address online harms, especially for children, while putting greater responsibility on the platforms and companies that provide these services.
Today, the Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture and Minister responsible for Official Languages, announced $376,540 in funding for Children's Healthcare Canada's Mind Over Media project. The initiative will examine how digital environments can affect the mental health and well-being of young people, helping us better understand these challenges in an increasingly connected world. The minister made the announcement while visiting the Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary.
Through this project, Children's Healthcare Canada will identify the impacts, potential harms and costs associated with digital engagement and disinformation on youth mental health. It will also help equip health experts with practical resources to better understand and respond to these challenges. These findings will help inform policymaking and future priorities for online safety.
This investment is part of the Government of Canada's broader efforts to make the online environment safer for children and all Canadians. As online harms are intensifying, the proposed Safe Social Media Act will make social media platforms and artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots safer by design by establishing new responsibilities for regulated services under three core pillars:
- Duty to Protect Children, by requiring age-appropriate protections and safeguards for younger users;
- Duty to Act Responsibly, by requiring regulated online services to mitigate the risks of exposure to harmful content;
- Duty to Make Certain Content Inaccessible, by requiring social media platforms to rapidly remove content that sexually victimizes a child or revictimizes a survivor, as well as intimate content communicated without consent, including deepfake sexual images; and
- Duty to be Transparent, by requiring regulated online services to submit publicly disclosed digital safety plans.
Regulated services will be required to be transparent in how they meet their obligations under the Act by publishing digital safety plans and complying with the new independent Digital Safety Commission.
Canadians should not have to choose between embracing new technologies and protecting themselves online. By ensuring our laws keep pace with technology, we are establishing clear rules and stronger responsibilities for the companies behind online services so Canadians, especially children and young people, can participate in the digital world safely and with confidence.
