Harvard’s research center for Internet law will head a new task force dedicated to the safety of children online, according to an article from the Associated Press.
The Internet Safety Technical Task Force will include several large tech companies, such as Facebook and Myspace, in addition to nonprofit groups who aim to make the Internet safer for minors. Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society will run the group.
One of the big goals of the task force is to discuss identity authentication tools, including ways to verify users’ ages on Web sites.
However, critics argue that age verification on the Internet isn’t an effective solution to stranger-danger online, because it raises too many questions concerning privacy and public policy.
According to the Associated Press, MySpace originated the task force, which rose out of an agreement with 49 state attorneys general in January. Greg Abbot, Texas’ attorney general, apparently wasn’t interested. —Hurley Goodall
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