I was happy to join CTV This Morning to talk about the upcoming social media ban for kids and why it is bad policy that is likely to be ineffective and place everyone’s privacy at risk.
www.ctvnews.ca/video/2026/0...
Why is a kids’ social media ban bad policy? Does the ban actually work? Doesn’t polling show overwhelming public support for a ban? Why is mandated age verification a privacy risk? If the ban is “temporary,” why does it matter? If not a ban, then what?
The government is expected to table the Digital Safety Act on Wednesday with reports that it will include a ban on social media for those under 16, framed as a “temporary” measure that platforms can…
www.michaelgeist.ca
University of Ottawa law professor Michael Geist explains why he says a ban will not work, and that Canada should ‘regulate platforms not people.’
The RCMP and CSIS at the committee table as witnesses during Bill C-22 clause-by-clause review. The Privacy Commissioner of Canada deliberately excluded by Liberal MPs. Pretty telling of the government’s view on striking a balance on lawful access.
www.michaelgeist.ca/2026/06/bill...
The amount of uncertainty and to-be-determined aspects of Bill C-34 are astonishing. So much left to cabinet and the future Digital Safety Commission. Teenagers today concerned about losing access to social media don’t have too much to worry about. This will take years to implement.
Working on a quick analysis of Bill C-34, but initial reaction is that this is largely the original Online Harms Act (platforms only) + social media ban for under 16 + Bill S-209 (pornography and age verification) + expansion to AI chatbots + power to Digital Safety Commission.
The House of Commons public safety committee started its clause-by-clause review of Bill C-22 last week, the stage at which the lawful access bill’s actual statutory language is settled and the privac...
The government just tabled Bill C-34, the Safe Social Media Act, which includes the Digital Safety Act and the Digital Safety Commission of Canada Act. Press conference scheduled for 5:00. Now we wait for the actual text to be posted online.
