Japan Forms Group to Protect Juveniles from Social Media Issues

Tokyo, Jan. 30 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Children and Families Agency has set up a working group to discuss possible regulation of social media services to prevent juveniles from being caught up in problems via the internet.

The group will mull measures while taking into account a revision of the law to improve the environment for young people's safe and secure internet use, which restricts the browsing of harmful information by such people.

The group, expected to release an interim report in July, will have opportunities to exchange opinions with junior and senior high school students.

Under the law, information encouraging juveniles to commit crimes or suicide, as well as that including obscene depictions or cruel content, is defined as information harmful to juveniles.

The law seeks to shield those under 18 from such information mainly through filtering technologies.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]