Latest news with #CarolineStageOlsen
Euronews
17-07-2025
- Business
- Euronews
Tech giants can easily check age of child users, says Danish minister
The largest online platforms should not have any issues implementing looming age verification solutions, Denmark's digital minister told Euronews in response to heavy lobbying around online child protection measures by the tech industry. 'They are the biggest companies in the world, with a bigger economy than most of our countries could ever dream of. I think they will manage to find a solution,' Caroline Stage Olsen said. On Monday, Stage Olsen together with the EU Technology Commissioner Henna Virkkunen, said five EU countries – Denmark, France, Greece, Italy and Spain – plan work on a customised national age verification application in a bid to shield children from harmful content online. This app should allow users to easily prove they are over 18 when accessing restricted adult content online. In the long term, the Commission hopes to integrate age verification functionalities within digital identification tools, European Digital Identity Wallets (eID), which will be rolled-out next year. Big tech companies face increasing pressure to implement age verification tools to combat the spread of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The CSAM regulation, proposed in 2022 and currently under debate in the Council of the EU, also relies heavily on identifying minors online to shield them from predators. Some companies have now implemented AI powered solutions to tackle the problem, but Stage Olsen said that she is confident online platforms will find the money to work on the tools. 'I'm sure that they will manage to have hired some of the brightest heads in the world concerning technology,' she said. US tech giant Meta last year proposed a harmonised age verification and safety standard system for apps and online services to the Commission. If an underaged child wants to download an app, app stores would be required to notify their parents under Meta's proposal. The 27 EU member states are currently free to set their own rules for age verification and there are no EU standards, although some of the EU rules foresee improved age verification to protect minors including the Digital Services Act (DSA) and Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD). Denmark, which started chairing meetings of EU ministers this month, said it has put several child protection measures on top of the agenda during the country's chairmanship. 'I will use the presidency to put this on top of the agenda and set a clear, political ambition that can shape EU policy in the years to come,' Stage Olsen said. One way of making the tools mandatory would be introducing these measures in a planned Digital Fairness Act, rules the Commission will put forward early next year to protect consumers online.
Euronews
16-07-2025
- Business
- Euronews
EU should simplify its AI Act and digital rulebook: Danish minister
A European Commission proposal to simplify digital rules affecting the digital sector, slated for publication in December, should also cover the recently adopted AI Act and Digital Services Act (DSA), Danish digital affairs minister Caroline Stage Olsen told Euronews in an interview. 'I think it's important to underline that there are no sacred cows here. We should look through all of our digital regulations and we should all, all 27 member states, look into where we can simplify [them],' Stage Olsen said. Denmark took the helm of the rotating chairmanship of the meetings of the EU ministers this month, and will have to find compromises on legislation including all digital files until December. EU Technology Commissioner Henna Virkkunen previously announced that the Commission is carrying out a digital fitness check, which will result in an 'omnibus' simplification package set to be presented on 10 December. The EU executive aims to identify reporting obligations in existing digital legislation that can be cut to ease pressure on enterprises, particularly SMEs. The question remains whether that simplification package will also cover the Digital Markets Act (DMA), DSA and the AI Act, since the rules entered into force less than two years ago, and haven't yet fully come into effect. Stage Olsen said that it's important to consider where the AI Act may be imposing unnecessary burdens on companies. The Act aims to regulate artificial intelligence systems according to the risk they pose to society. It entered into force in August 2024, but will only fully apply in 2027. 'If there are certain aspects where there is room for simplification, or for making interpretations easier for companies, or to make fewer reporting demands, it would be stupid not to do so,' she said, adding that it's better that companies don't spend lots of money on unnecessary implementation. AI Act The AI Act and its Code of Practice – voluntary guidelines for providers of AI models such as ChatGPT and Claude AI – were subject to lobbying efforts as companies tried to get the 'simplest possible rules'. Earlier this month, CEOs from more than 40 European companies including ASML, Philips, Siemens and Mistral, asked for a 'two-year clock-stop' on the AI Act before key obligations enter into force this August, claiming they have only a short timeframe to comply. In addition, the US government as well as American big tech companies expressed criticism saying the rules hinder innovation. Stage Olsen denied that the idea of reviewing the AI Act had anything to do with the US position. 'It is about our ability to stand on our own feet. And then indirectly, of course, it has something to do with the US, because we have to keep up with them. If we want to lead in any technology race, we really need to wake up from our sleep and start doing something. We need to simplify the rules for our own sake, not for others,' she said, adding that everyone that operates in Europe needs to play by the European rules. On Tuesday the minister told lawmakers in the European Parliament about Danish priorities for this half year and said protecting minors online is on top of the list. 'I will use the presidency to put this on top of the agenda and set a clear, political ambition that can shape EU policy in the years to come,' she said, adding that Denmark seeks to make age verification tools mandatory. At the same time, the Danish Minister of Culture, Jakob Engel-Schmidt, announced on Wednesday that he aims to get support across Europe to introduce stronger protection against deepfakes after Denmark adopted a bill that will make it illegal to share digital imitations of people's personal characteristics.
Euronews
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
Denmark seeks stronger platform rules to protect minors online
Denmark wants stricter enforcement of the EU Digital Services Act (DSA) as part of a range of proposed measures to better protect children online as it started chairing meetings of EU ministers this month. Caroline Stage Olsen, the country's digital minister, told the European Parliament's Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) committee on Tuesday that Denmark has put several child protection measures on top of the agenda during the country's chairmanship. 'I will use the presidency to put this on top of the agenda and set a clear, political ambition that can shape EU policy in the years to come,' Stage Olsen said. 'We will try to facilitate discussions to have a stronger legal framework to protect children online, for example related to the upcoming Digital Fairness Act,' she said, adding that this framework can help make age verification tools mandatory. Denmark will also push for EU countries to adopt a joint declaration on the protection of minors online during the informal telecom ministers meeting in October. 'The aim is to provide political guidance on this important theme,' Stage Olsen said. Another workshop held in Brussels by the end of the year will follow up on the political guidance and is aimed to contribute to the work the European Commission has done on online safety for minors. On Monday, the Commission presented further guidance to online platforms on how to protect minors, addressing issues such as addictive design, cyber bullying and harmful content. The guidelines under the DSA, EU-wide legislation that aims to combat illegal content and products, come after the EU executive opened a number of investigations into potential breaches of the DSA in areas related to child protection. Last year, it began investigating Meta's Facebook and Instagram because it suspects that their algorithms may stimulate behavioural addictions in children, as well as create so-called "rabbit-hole effects".
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
France among EU states to test age-check app to protect children online
France and four EU countries will test an app aimed at preventing children from accessing harmful content online by checking users' ages, the European Commission said Monday. Several European nations have ramped up the pressure on the bloc to better protect minors online through more stringent measures, with some going as far as to advocate banning social media for under-15s. On Monday, the European Commission unveiled the prototype of an age-verification app that Denmark, France, Greece, Italy and Spain will customise to launch national versions within several months. "It will allow users to easily prove they are over 18 years old, protecting children from inappropriate content," explained EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen. "It's hard to imagine a world where kids can enter a store to buy alcohol, to go to a nightclub by simply stating that they are old enough, no bouncers, no ID checks, just a simple 'Yes, I am over the age of 18'" Danish digital minister Caroline Stage Olsen said. "That has been the case online for many years," she added alongside Virkkunen, saying the new app would help ensure there were "no more nightclubs without bouncers." The aim is for each member state to develop their own app since they have different rules and may wish to tailor age limits for different services - ranging from porn or gambling sites, to social platforms like Instagram or TikTok. Porn sites go dark in France over new age verification rules (with AFP) Read more on RFI English
Japan Times
15-07-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
EU states to test age-check app to limit children's access to online services
Five EU countries including France will test an app aimed at preventing children from accessing harmful content online by checking the age of users, the European Commission said Monday. Several European nations have ramped up pressure on the bloc to better protect minors online through more stringent measures, with some going as far as to advocate banning social media for under-15s. On Monday, the commission unveiled the prototype of an age-verification app that Denmark, France, Greece, Italy and Spain will customize to launch national versions within several months. "It will allow users to easily prove they are over 18 years old, protecting children from inappropriate content," EU technology chief Henna Virkkunen told reporters. "It's hard to imagine a world where kids can enter a store to buy alcohol, to go to a nightclub by simply stating that they are old enough, no bouncers, no ID checks, just a simple 'Yes, I am over the age of 18'" Danish digital minister Caroline Stage Olsen said. "That has been the case online for many years," she added alongside Virkkunen, saying the new app would help ensure there were "no more nightclubs without bouncers." The aim is for each member state to develop their own app since they have different rules and may wish to tailor age limits for different services — ranging from porn or gambling sites, to social platforms like Instagram or TikTok. For example, France has set a minimum age of 15 to use social media, greater than the 13 set by the platforms themselves — though it is still waiting for an EU green light for those rules to come into force. The 27-country European Union has some of the world's strictest digital rules to bring Big Tech to heel, with several investigations ongoing into how platforms protect children — or fail to do so. Once the app is available, users would be able to download it from an online store and then use it to verify that they are above the age threshold for accessing a website or platform. But the commission said it will be "further customized" by EU states alongside platforms and users themselves. Stage Olsen said the app could also be used in the real world, for example, customers could use it to prove their age while buying alcohol or cigarettes. Among the bloc's existing legal weaponry is the content moderation law known as the Digital Services Act (DSA), which has strict rules to safeguard children. On Monday, the EU also published recommendations under the DSA to online platforms to ensure the safety of children and prevent their exposure to dangerous behavior. These include removing "addictive" features such as "read receipts" which tell users when an individual has seen their message, making it easier for minors to block or mute users and preventing accounts from downloading or taking screenshots of content. The EU also recommended platforms turn off notifications by default, especially during sleeping hours, limit apps' access to photos or turn off the camera by default. Backed by France and Spain, Greece pushed a proposal in June for how the EU should restrict children's use of online platforms. Politicians are increasingly worried about online risks as rising evidence shows social media and excessive smartphone pose risks to minors' mental and physical health. Denmark, which took charge of the rotating six-month EU presidency in July, has indicated the issue is a key priority and will push the bloc to take further action.
