Chinese Minors Banned from Internet at Night to Combat Addiction

Introduction

Chinese people under the age of 18 will soon be banned from using the Internet at night on their smartphones, and their daily online time will be restricted under a new law to combat internet addiction, unveiled on Wednesday.

The law, which is due to come into force on September 2 after organizational public comment, provides that any minor is prohibited from using the Internet through any mobile device between ten o’clock in the evening and six in the morning.

In addition, a system will be installed on phones that limits the daily time spent online by minors using smartphones, as those aged 16 to 17 are entitled to use the Internet for two hours, compared to 40 minutes for children under eight.

Strict Implementation

These new rules, proposed by the Chinese Cyberspace Administration, will be implemented through technical means that are among the most stringent in the world in this respect.

Parents can disable these features if they wish.

According to China’s Cyberspace Administration, these new measures “create a safe and healthy Internet environment for minors,” following other measures taken by Chinese authorities in recent years to “restrict Internet use by minors.”

In recent years, China has passed many laws aimed at this goal.

And as of 2021, it limits the amount of time kids can spend each day playing online. He also froze the approval of new video games for nine months, which destabilized many technology companies, most notably Tencent.