Hong Kong considers legislation to regulate minors’ social media use

Hong Kong is considering legislation to regulate minors’ use of social media as part of efforts to protect children, Secretary for Justice Paul Lam Ting-kwok has said. Speaking to the South China Morning Post and other media outlets on Wednesday, Lam said legislation was among the options under consideration. His comments followed a policy address that proposed creating a task force to review the situation.

The supplied material does not specify what form any legislation might take. It gives no details about possible age limits, platform obligations, parental controls, enforcement powers or penalties. Lam dismissed concerns that measures of this kind would infringe individual rights and freedoms.

He emphasised that the stated objective was the protection of children, according to the report. The proposed task force is intended to examine the issue before any policy choice is confirmed. The source material does not say when the review will begin, how long it will last or whether the government has committed to introducing a bill.

For now, legislation remains one option on the table rather than an announced final policy. Further details about the scope of the review and the government’s preferred approach were not provided.