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The government has announced the main principles of its strategy to combat internet addiction among minors, which proposes setting time limits on the use by children of mobile devices instead of an outright ban.<\/p>\n
The National Strategy for the Protection of Minors from Internet Addiction was launched at a special event at the Athens Conservatory, in the presence of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the relevant ministers.<\/p>\n
Mitsotakis said that the problem at hand was well known but lacked policies to address it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is the image of children glued to a mobile phone who lose touch with the world. We discover along the way that they have severe psychological problems \u2013 depression, isolation, distraction. It has to do with the dark side of technology,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Doubting that a universal ban would be effective, he said that parents and children must discuss the issue among themselves, the state must examine its regulatory role and social media companies must be held accountable as their algorithms are designed to maximize the amount of time people spend looking at the screen.<\/p>\n
Protecting adolescent children, whose brains are still in a stage of development, was a self-evident obligation of society, he added.<\/p>\n
The strategy will be applied in several steps. The first involves informing parents and children about the existing parental control capabilities on mobile phones, while the second will involve the introduction of a Kids Wallet, which will simplify the way in which parents can intervene in the control of phone use.<\/p>\n
Addressing the event, Digital Governance Minister Dimitris Papastergiou said \u201cbans are not the solution. The solution is dialogue, to be able to talk to children. The state must stand by parents and children.\u201d<\/p>\n
Immediately after the event, the first tool of the strategy, parco.gov.gr, was launched. The tool offers parents step-by-step guides on how to create time and application limits on the children\u2019s phones on Android and Apple devices.<\/p>\n
By spring, another tool, the Kids Wallet app, will become available. The digital wallet will also function as a parental control tool and will certify the phone user\u2019s real age. The parent will be able to limit the use of the device from one to four hours of daily use via the platform.<\/p>\n
Mitsotakis said that the Kids Wallet could also be implemented in other EU countries.<\/p>\n
\u201cResponsibility is passed on to the child. We must say \u2018no\u2019 to our children,\u201d he noted. \u201cThe next big challenge is how we can put pressure on the platforms to design the applications with their use by children and adolescents,\u201d he continued, noting that Instagram has already done so.<\/p>\n
He called on the EU to play a greater regulatory role in pressuring the large American platforms to allow broader interventions.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo the big platforms, I would say take responsibility. You\u2019ve already made too much money from what you\u2019re doing. You don\u2019t need to make money from children and teenagers when we know very well that what you\u2019re doing is dangerous for their mental health.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n