No Facebook for kids up to 13 years in India

New Delhi: In a bid to stop misuse of Facebook and other social networking sites by children, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday asked Facebook not to permit children below the age of 13 years to access Facebook. The court asked the social networking site to upload a disclaimer in bold on its homepage that children below the age of 13 cannot use Facebook.

 

No Facebook for kids up to 13 years in India

The order was passed by a division bench of acting Chief Justice BD Ahmed and Justice Vibhu Bakhru. "You (Facebook) can write on the home page in bold letters that children below 13 are not allowed. There is no harm in doing this...," court said.

 

Appearing on behalf of Facebook, Parag Tripathi assured the court Facebook "will upload the disclaimer on its home page that children below 13 years can not open the account".

 

The High Court bench also questioned the central government as to what law it had to stop misuse of social networking by children.

 

The high court judges asked the government to inform court about provisions in the law related to a minor using a social networking site.

 

"In India what is the law for a minor to use Facebook? Is it 13, 16, 18 or no law? What is the requirement under Indian law for Facebook?," the court asked from the central government's counsel.

 

In response, the counsel told the court that in the United States the age to use social networking sites was 13 years.

 

"You don't have a law for protection of minor on social networking sites? You are behind the time...the world has gone much ahead," the court said.

 

The bench was hearing arguments of petitioner and former RSS idealogue K N Govindacharya's counsel Veerag Gupta that children below 18 years are getting into an agreement with the social networking sites to open an account which is against the Indian Majority Act, the Indian Contract Act and also the Information and Technology Act.

 

The petition also sought recovery of taxes from the web sites on their income from operations in India.

 

Earlier in May this year, the Delhi High Court had asked Facebook and Google to submit within four weeks suggestions on safety measures for online usage of such sites by minors in India. The court was "worried" that children could be exploited through social networking sites.

 

Justices B D Ahmed and Vibhu Bakhru had then voiced concern about Indian children entering into agreement with Facebook and other social networking sites and then being lured knowingly and unknowing into illegality by adults.

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