2.1.24 - SPECIAL EDITION
Social Media CEOs Grilled in Senate Hearing on Child Safety: Key Takeaways for Families

In today’s decisive political climate, there are few topics that Democrats and Republicans agree on. Protecting kids online is one of the few.

Yesterday, the CEOs of Meta, TikTok, X, Snap, and Discord appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on online child safety. While sparks flew and solutions remain elusive, we have a few key takeaways for you.

Click here for our brief video highlights.

Mark Zuckerberg (Meta) and Shou Chew (TikTok) faced the most intense scrutiny for abuse on their platforms.

"I'm sorry for everything you have all been through,” Mark Zuckerberg said to the families of social media abuse victims after being pressed by Senator Josh Hawley.

“That’s why we have invested so much and we are going to continue doing industry-wide efforts to make sure no one has to go through the things your families have had to suffer,” Zuckerberg continued.

Click here to see the moment Mark Zuckerberg stood to face the families.

Senator Ted Cruz asked Zuckerberg about an Instagram warning screen shown to those searching for child abuse material, allowing users to “get resources” or continue and “see results anyway.”

“Mr. Zuckerberg, what the hell were you thinking,” Senator Cruz asked.

Senator Laphonza Butler asked Evan Spiegel (Snap) to address the families who had lost children to drugs purchased on Snapchat, many of whom were present yesterday.

After apologizing, he added that Snap “proactively look[s] for and detect[s] drug related content.”

Senator Lindsey Graham shared the story of Gavin Guffey, a 17 year old who died by suicide following sextortion that took place on Instagram.

Gavin’s dad, SC state house Rep. Brandon Guffey, was in the room yesterday. As of this week, their family has sued Meta for not having tools in place to protect underage kids who use their platforms.

When asked about Meta’s lacking oversight and the Guffey lawsuit, Zuckerberg said, “I think they can sue us.”

You can read more of the Guffey’s story here. Visit the Less Than 3 website to support the work they’re doing to protect other youth online.

“I know you don’t mean it to be so, but you have blood on your hands,” said Senator Graham.

While we’re glad to see these tech executives apologize for the wrongdoing of their companies, this falls short of the real action we are fighting for to make the internet a safer place for our kids.

TAKE ACTION
What can you do?

All this news can be overwhelming, but we want to end this issue with some practical steps you can take to ensure your family and students are as equipped as possible for the wild west of the tech world. 

1. Speak Up - From the Kids Online Safety Act to the Protect Act, there are many proposed pieces of legislation to protect minors and support the fight against explicit content online. Share your story and reach out to your elected officials - you can encourage them to support legislation to hold Big Tech accountable.

2. Talk to Your Kids - Begin discussions about online safety, set clear boundaries with tech, and don’t be afraid to use parental controls to restrict access. Our guides are a great place to start. Ensure your kids know who they can go to if they encounter something that they don’t know how to handle online. Remind them that their safety is more important than the fear of getting in trouble.

3. Sign Up Together - When your child or teen logs in to a new app or platform, create an account with them. Spend time learning about the environment that they will likely spend hours in. When you understand the good, the bad, and the ugly of a platform, you can be better positioned to protect your kids. Our videos and conversation starters can help you as you navigate trends and overwhelming digital spaces.

4. Empower Your Kids - Even if you do all the right things, your child will likely still encounter content and people online that you’d want them to avoid. Prepare an action plan for how they can report bad actors and protect their online identity.