Individuals under the age of 16 will not be allowed to create personal digital accounts on social network platforms where age restrictions are applied.
elchi reports, citing trend, that this is reflected in the draft law on amendments to the Law “On Information, Informatization and Protection of Information,” which was discussed at today’s session of the Milli Majlis.
New definitions
social network platform – an information system that allows users to create a personal digital account, establish virtual connections with other users, and share digital content (text, photos, videos, audio, etc.) individually and/or publicly, the main function of which is to ensure digital interaction between users;
age-restricted social network platform (platform) – an information system that ensures digital interaction between users (excluding education, healthcare, or professional-business relationships) through the mass sharing of digital content (text, photos, videos, audio, etc.), taking into account age restrictions;
provider of an age-restricted social network platform (provider) – a legal or natural person who forms the technological infrastructure of the platform, determines its operating principles and user rules, directly controls the algorithms for sharing digital content (text, photos, videos, audio, etc.) and the processing of user data, and is responsible for the management of said platform;
personal digital account – a digital page created during the registration of a natural or legal person on the platform, which ensures their identification, the placement, management, and sharing of their information, the establishment of connections with other users, as well as the personalized use of services, protected by unique identification and login information (username, password, multi-factor authentication tools, etc.), to which the rights and obligations pertaining to the user are applied.
Requirements for registration of persons on the platform
13-4.1. Individuals under the age of 16 will not be allowed to create personal digital accounts on the platform. The list of platforms will be determined by the body (institution) defined by the relevant executive authority.
13-4.2. To ensure control over age restrictions when creating a personal digital account on the platform, the provider must ensure the consistent application of the following technical methods:
declaration of the person’s age;
verification of the declared age of the person, as well as the submission of data via bank card, email address, and mobile phone number to obtain the consent of the legal representative of a child aged 16-18 for the creation of a personal digital account.
13-4.3. Based on the information mentioned above, the provider will verify the declared age by sending a request to the email address and mobile number of the person, as well as the legal representative of a child aged 16-18, and by deducting funds from their bank card (subject to refund).
13-4.4. During the creation of a personal digital account, the provider may apply technical methods not provided for in 13-4.2, subject to the consent of the body (institution) defined by the relevant executive authority, provided that such methods do not cause restrictions on human and civil rights and freedoms provided for in the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and do not contradict the requirements of normative legal acts in the field of consumer rights protection, state secrets, protection of personal data, and information security.
13-4.5. If the verification conducted through the technical methods provided for in 13-4.2 and 13-4.4 determines that the user is 16 years of age or older, the creation of a personal digital account will be ensured.
13-4.6. The scope of content and advertisements placed by the provider on the personal digital account of a child aged 16-18, as well as their hours of platform usage, will be managed by the child’s legal representative. To implement such control, the provider must ensure the necessary functionality on the platform. Legal representatives are responsible for active monitoring of the personal digital accounts of children aged 16-18 based on this functionality, as well as ensuring that they use social network platforms in accordance with the requirements of this law.
13-4.7. The provider must ensure regular analysis of the person’s behavior on the social network platform and, in case of reasonable doubts regarding the declared age, ensure re-verification of age in accordance with the requirements of 13-4.2 and 13-4.4. In such cases, if violations of the age requirement are detected, the person’s access to the personal digital account must be immediately restricted. The management of accounts to which restrictions have been applied will be regulated in accordance with the internal rules of the platforms.
13-4.8. Regarding personal data collected for the purpose of verifying the user’s age, the provider cannot perform the following actions:
store them in its information system or transfer them to third parties;
use them for commercial, targeted advertising (directed at a specific user), or other purposes, excluding age verification.
13-4.9. The provider must ensure the immediate deletion of collected personal data once the verification process mentioned in 13-4.8 is completed.
13-4.10. The provider must ensure the deletion of information, shared content, and personal data placed by a person with a personal digital account before reaching the age of majority, upon the request of the person themselves, or in case they have not reached the age of majority, upon the request of their legal representative or the body (institution) defined by the relevant executive authority, as well as on its own initiative in cases determined by its internal rules.
13-4.11. Regarding the personal digital accounts of children aged 16-18, the provider must ensure the following technical and security measures related to platform usage:
setting a safe usage mode and enhanced privacy settings based on the user’s choice;
setting all standard privacy settings on personal digital accounts and restricting the accessibility of geolocation data, including its disclosure to the public;
preventing the placement of content, including information and advertisements, that harms their physical and mental health or creates addiction on personal digital accounts, as well as prohibiting the use of manipulative design techniques (infinite scrolling, automatic playback of video materials, etc.);
preventing the placement of information mentioned in Article 4.2 of the Law “On Protection of Children from Harmful Information” on personal digital accounts.
13-4.12. To prevent the spread of harmful content that poses a threat to the life, health, sexual integrity, honor, dignity, and other legally protected rights and freedoms of children aged 16-18, the provider must implement digital solutions on the platform that operate in continuous mode and ensure operational intervention. The provider’s technical intervention time for preventing such cases should not exceed 24 hours from the moment the harmful content is detected.
13-4.13. The provider must submit annual data regarding the implementation of the requirements provided for in 13-4.10 and 13-4.11, as well as statistics on cases of refusal to create a personal digital account, to the body (institution) defined by the relevant executive authority by January 15 of the following year.
13-4.14. The bodies (institutions) defined by the relevant executive authority will carry out regular awareness-raising measures regarding the use of platforms in accordance with the requirements of this law, the protection of children’s rights during such use, and their protection from harmful content.
After the discussions, the draft law was put to a vote and adopted in the second reading.