Digital Government News

Liberal Party targets big tech companies for better online safety

Eliza Sayon May 2, 2022

2 min read

The Liberal Party of Australia has promised that, if the Coalition is returned to government, big tech companies will have to enhance their devices with safety controls that are easy for parents to use and hard for children to bypass.

The Coalition’s new eSafety package will be requiring technology companies to create new safeguards for their smartphones and tablets to protect their users from potential harm.

With the new package, the eSafety Commissioner will be working with Apple, Samsung and others to design device settings and a binding code that will be in line with the Online Safety Act.

If the industry does not create these controls within 12 months of the election, the Australian Government would then move to force companies to comply with regulations.

“This is one of my great missions, can I tell you, of mental health in this country and the impact that social media is having on impacting negatively in our society, our community, our families,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said.

“If we want to be strong as a country… then we need to be dealing with this stuff and we need to be ensuring that the online world, the digital world, is a safe place for Australians. The rules of the real world must apply in the digital world.”

The Prime Minister stated that the new eSafety package will push tech companies to pre-install parental controls on tablets and devices within a year of the election.

“(Kids) know how to get around all the other things – that’s just real life and we live it just like everyone else does. And what we want is safety by design,” he stated.

“I have made those threats before to big tech companies and I followed through on every single occasion.”

The Australian Government’s eSafety package includes $23 million to raise awareness of eSafety support in schools and provide teacher training and resources.

Some $10 million will go to the eSafety Commissioner to make it easier for people to report online harms, by expanding coordination with other regulatory and law enforcement agencies.

Another $2 million has been earmarked for an online eSafety grants program to support women and girls in culturally and linguistically diverse communities.

The Prime Minister also addressed a campaign rally in the marginal seat of Reid, which Labor is considered a strong prospect of winning.

Warringah Liberal candidate Katherine Deves, who also attended and was briefly acknowledged by the Prime Minister, made a hasty exit without answering any questions from the media pack.

Ms Deves has been under fire for her controversial comments on transgender women in sports.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg launched his campaign for the seat of Kooyong on Sunday, taking aim at his independent opponent Monique Ryan.

This article was first published on CommsRoom

Eliza Sayon

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Eliza is a content producer and editor at Public Spectrum. She is an experienced writer on topics related to the government and to the public, as well as stories that uplift and improve the community.