On June 10, the Government of Canada introduced Bill C-34, the Safe Social Media Act. If passed, this bill would require social media sites and AI chatbot services to implement design features and safeguards to protect young users, including a duty to make certain content inaccessible, prevent children under the age of 16 from having social media accounts, and enforce age restrictions for accessing visual pornographic content.

While the OTW supports protecting children from online harms, we continue to strongly oppose age verification laws, which threaten users’ privacy and prevent open access to information. We also share concerns that blanket social media bans risk isolating young people from social and support networks they rely on.

Bill C-34 would establish a new Digital Safety Commission of Canada to set and enforce standards for online safety. The breadth and concentration of power granted to the Commission –⁠ which consists of just three to five appointed commissioners –⁠ raises significant concerns that the framework is vulnerable to political influence and regulatory scope creep, laying a foundation for internet censorship. Additionally, the burden of complying with the Commission’s extensive safety and reporting standards, along with fines of up to $10 million CAD or 3% of the service’s gross global revenue –⁠ whichever is greater –⁠ for violations, risks overwhelming the administrative and financial resources of non-commercial or volunteer-run sites.

Bill C-34 has a long way to go before it is passed into law. Without more details about how platforms will ultimately qualify as regulated services, it is hard to say whether this bill would apply to the Archive of Our Own (AO3); typically, AO3 and other non-commercial sites that do not rely on algorithmic recommendations do not count as “social media” under these types of proposals. Nevertheless, we encourage concerned fans who live in Canada to contact your local MP and urge them to protect access to noncommercial sites, such as AO3 and Wikipedia, and to support freedom of speech and privacy on the internet. We’ll be tracking this bill –⁠ and the other bills and proposed bills that have cropped up elsewhere –⁠ as it moves through the legislative process.

Is there a new law that might affect fans or fannish activities in your country? Send us a message about legislation you think we should know about. (Submitting a concern doesn’t guarantee that it will be included in a future Spotlight on Legal Issues post.)