Why is the implementation of the "Minor Protection Mode" so difficult? NPC Deputies Call for Action

21st Century Business Herald Reporter Xiao Xiao Beijing Report

Before and after this year’s Two Sessions, many education and legal professionals told reporters that domestic Internet regulation for minors needs to be strengthened.

“Although apps now have a minors mode, and some phones can be easily turned on with one click, in practice, teenagers and students don’t use it much, and it’s not common.” Zeng Xuqing, a representative of the National People’s Congress and secretary of the Party Committee at an elementary school in Fujian, told 21st Century Business Herald that working on the front lines of basic education for many years, the issue of minors’ Internet use has long troubled parents and schools.

In Zeng Xuqing’s research, many children see content on their phones that is no different from adults. This is partly because social platforms lack a unified age verification system, minors’ modes can be easily bypassed, and partly because some parents are unaware of the rules or neglect supervision.

“Like our (elementary) upper-grade students, during winter and summer vacations, they just use their parents’ phones to play.” she said. Some parents also face difficulties in daily discipline, saying, “They insist children must have phones, but they can’t manage it, so they ask the school to find a solution.”

Zeng Xuqing has submitted suggestions related to minors’ online protection for four consecutive years. Her feeling is that, despite many existing regulations, implementation remains difficult, and the collaborative protection involving families, schools, and society has not yet fully formed.

Tracing the timeline, the revised Minors Protection Law in 2020 added a dedicated chapter on “Online Protection.” It requires online games to have a unified minors’ identity verification system, and social platforms to implement time management, content moderation, and spending limits; in 2024, the “Regulations on Minors’ Online Protection” officially came into effect, further requiring platforms with significant influence on minors to provide a dedicated “Minors Mode”; by 2025, regulators have detailed several non-mandatory standards, including embedding a one-click full-device minors’ mode into smart devices.

However, many industry insiders believe that, unlike games, the minors’ age verification work on social platforms is implemented independently by each platform, lacking a unified standard — which is a core measure of the global “age ban” initiatives. Additionally, content grading and mandatory disclosure of minors’ reports are somewhat vague, leading to inconsistent platform enforcement.

To address these practical issues, Zeng Xuqing proposed establishing a nationwide unified reporting platform for minors’ online protection, requiring platforms to regularly disclose minors’ usage data and governance measures to raise public awareness.

She also suggested strengthening efforts to combat illegal information targeting minors, urging platforms to utilize AI and big data more effectively to identify harmful content. If platform management responsibilities are not properly fulfilled, legal accountability should be pursued.

The issue of defining and filtering harmful online information for minors has become urgent in recent years. Last year, Baidu’s vice president’s 13-year-old daughter caused widespread social discussion after an incident involving fan “unboxing” and online fans. Minors’ online social conflicts have led to behaviors like “unboxing,” “doxxing,” and “cyberbullying,” with a noticeable increase in disputes over reputation, portrait rights, and privacy rights.

A more serious warning is that harmful information could become bait for “grooming” minors. Currently, after enabling minors’ modes on leading domestic short video platforms, accounts disable features like “Nearby” and “Trending,” and cannot use private messaging, live streaming, or tipping.

It’s important to note that, although stricter regulations for minors are being adopted worldwide, the level of strictness is highly debated. For example, should social platforms be required to verify identities? Would collecting age data create new privacy risks? Would disabling certain features for minors (like comments) weaken their ability to adapt? These specific measures still require more research from academia and industry.

Zeng Xuqing also emphasized that protecting minors online does not mean completely isolating children from the Internet or blocking access, but rather guiding them. Her suggestion is to develop national standards for child-friendly smart devices, create features that record browsing history, and provide content suitable for different psychological development stages.

Meanwhile, platforms, families, and society should work together to protect minors, especially emphasizing the crucial role of family. “In fact, many psychological issues among minors stem from parental supervision,” Zeng Xuqing believes. Children’s online habits are closely related to their home environment, and parents should consciously improve their digital literacy and actively guide minors to use the Internet healthily.

(Edited by: Wen Jing)

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