Kenya’s Communication Authority has published new guidelines requiring age-verification mechanisms on social media to protect children from harmful content online. The guidelines aim to provide a framework for the design, development, and use of ICT products and services to ensure the safety of children online. The guidelines state that children have the right to access information and freedom of expression, and the responsibility of safeguarding them online falls on everyone. Application Service Providers (ASPs) and Content Service Providers (CSPs) have been urged to develop age-verification mechanisms to ensure children do not access media they are not supposed to. Mobile service operators are directed to ensure users of specific SIM cards are fully registered in line with the Kenya Information and Communications Act, 1998 and the Kenya Information and Communications (Registration of SIM-cards) Regulations, 2015.
The measures are expected to curb cyberbullying, hate speech, and misinformation, which are often emboldened by the anonymous nature of social media and other online profiles. However, efforts to implement similar mechanisms in other countries have failed, such as Nigeria and India. Concerns have been raised about the ID date being leaked in digital hacks and the mandatory identification leaving government critics, bloggers, and ordinary Kenyans vulnerable.