Source : Perth Now news
The father of a teenage boy who took his life after being targeted by an online predator has told a parliamentary inquiry into the federal government’s proposed online safety laws that more kids will be lost if existing unlawful material standards are removed from the legislation.
Wayne Holdsworth, who lost his 17-year-old son Mac in October 2023 after he was a victim of a sextortion plot, was among the first speakers at a two-day Senate inquiry into the government’s proposed digital duty of care which began on Monday.
The landmark legislation would require social media giants and technology companies to take reasonable action to protect Australians from seriously harmful material and conduct online.
Mr Holdsworth said he was concerned at the potential impact of removing the 17 existing unlawful material codes and standards after 12 months in favour of a single, overarching duty of care.
“I’ve done some hard things in my life, but I’ll never, ever do anything as hard as I had to do that morning, and that was to leave (Mac) with tears dropping on his face and going out to his 14-year-old sister in the kitchen and telling her that her brother had passed away,” he told the inquiry.
“Holistically we need to really ensure that this opportunity isn’t wasted, that we tick all the boxes, make sure that everything is included, that we need to have it included,” Mr Holdsworth said.
“Let’s not let perfection get in the way of a really good idea and delay this for another six months. We really need to ensure the government does include this, but does it quickly because as every day goes by, there’s kids exposed to this and there will be kids (who) take their life because we’re procrastinating.”
Mr Holdsworth was a key voice in News Corp Australia’s Let Them Be Kids campaign to protect children on social media.
Experts and parents will give evidence into the digital duty of care across the two-day Senate inquiry.
Communications Minister Anika Wells has said tech companies would be hit with fines of $109 million if they fail to comply with the laws and mitigate the risks.
The legislation would also ban “nudify” apps capable of producing sexually explicit AI deepfake images, and give social media users the choice to opt in or out of the algorithm on their feeds.
The legislation was introduced to the House of Representatives in September and passed last month but without Coalition support.
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