An undated handout image from US startup Replika shows a user interacting with a smartphone app to customise an avatar for a personal artificial intelligence chatbot, known as a Replika, in San Francisco, California, U.S. — Luka, Inc/Handout via Reuters
Artificial intelligence-powered chatbots that encourage suicide or hold sexually explicit conversations pose a "clear and present danger” to children, Australia’s online safety regulator said, as it rolled out new rules governing the services.
The measures are the latest in a series of stringent digital restrictions in Australia, including a world-first social media ban for under-16s. The law takes effect in December and covers a range of services including Facebook and Instagram, both owned by Meta Platforms Inc, and YouTube.
In a statement on Tuesday, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said children are being exposed to "awful” age-inappropriate content at an increasingly young age. Inman Grant said she’d heard of 10-year-olds engaging sexually with the artificial companions, which are mostly unregulated.
Under new rules, sites that display or distribute pornography, or other "high-impact content,” will have to apply age-checking technology to stop children accessing the material. App stores must ensure that apps are appropriately rated, and that age-assurance measures are in place for any downloads.
The rules apply to a range of online services including social media platforms, gaming sites and AI services. Breaches can be punished by penalties of as much as A$50mil (RM138.92mil or US$33mil).
"I do not want Australian children and young people serving as casualties of powerful technologies thrust onto the market without guardrails,” Inman Grant said. – Bloomberg
