In YouTube's world, parental supervision means: 'Everyone sign in to Google, click once, and trust we get it right'

YouTube has introduced features that allow for "supervision" of tweens and teenagers, but it only works if kids use their parent or guardian’s Google account and only offers pre-programmed filters. The streaming site has woken up to the fact that the millions of vids it hosts are notoriously varied and that kids can easily …

[fidodogbreath]

YouTube has introduced features that allow for "supervision" of tweens and teenagers, but it only works if kids use their parent or guardian’s Google account

Sure; because kids would never just click Sign Out. And Mom or Dad certainly won't mind the kiddos trolling through their Gmail

[John Sturdy]

It could work both ways

The latter possibility means the kids could keep the parents on the strait and narrow.

[Blackjack]

Completely freaking useless

Kids can just clean the cookies and not log in a Google account.

[Warm Braw]

Re: Completely freaking useless

A responsible parent should be at least as concerned about their kids being tracked by Google as they are about what they might be watching online - and YouTube is probably not their greatest concern with respect to the latter.

[Anonymous Coward]

F*** you Google

That's it. YouTube is going to be blocked at my house. If visitors want to watch cat videos then they can pay network costs.

Google's Utopia is getting closer to what Orwell predicted each and every day.

[msknight]

Be honest...

"You tube has woken up to the fact...."

It knew it all along. It only now gives a crap because politicians are about to come down heavy on its ass, and the FB Australia thing has them running scared. Well, as scared as anyone can be about new laws being passed, but then being made exempt from them. I mean, how long is it before other companies claim discrimination over laws that apply to them, but not Google and FB? Lawsuit in three.... two.... one....

[Anonymous Coward]

What is filtered?

As they are a US company, I have the preconceived notion that they will filter out anything that smacks of central or left of central social ideas (which would have bored my kids away),, anything where pale people hold hands with brown people - in fact any kissing at all and even very basic swearing.

Extreme violence is permitted though.

Please Google, yell me your filters are not designed by US "conservatives"!

[Chz]

Re: What is filtered?

It's already the case that YT Kids allows all sorts of fluffy alt-right, borderline fash stuff through the holes. I just removed all YT access when the Boy started calling someone "Soy Boy" while using YT Kids.

[Antonius_Prime]

Re: What is filtered?

Yeah, my then 3 year old started asking who Jeesis is, because he was asked to stay after the toy video to be told the gospel.

That particular channel got blocked so damn fast I near put a hole through the tablet with my finger.

Religion is a personal choice. It shouldn't be forced on people in mass media.

Or, as I once saw it masterfully put:

"Religion / Opinions is/are like a penis. Many people have them. They're all different. It's OK to be proud of yours. Just don't whip it out and start waving it in peoples' faces or shoving it down their throats. Especially childrens..."

(I state all of that as someone living in a catholic country, where the child will more than likely be brought up in that faith till he makes his own choice, by the way. Keep the grandparents on either side happy...)

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: What is filtered?

You might be the only person on earth who considers Google to be a mouthpiece for conservative views.

[Anonymous Coward]

Inappropriate images

The large image at the top of the "Google Family Link" image shows an adult and a child lying down side by side. Am I viewing the unfiltered version?

[Mike 137]

A question remains though

As access to the service requires processing of personal information, under the GDPR access by persons under the age of 16 to 13 (depending on national derogation) would require parental consent anyway. Rather than using a parent's account, why not build an access scope limit into the mechanism for obtaining parental consent. Or don't they bother to obtain this consent?

A side issue (but an important one) is that any US based organisation still claiming to rely on Privacy Shield is operating unlawfully when dealing with customers (or "product" if you like) in the EU, as Privacy Shield has been nullified by the courts of both the EU (ECLI:EU:C:2020:559, 16th July 2020) and Switzerland (8th September 2020) - the sole jurisdictions in favour of which is was set up. Nevertheless, when last I looked a few weeks back, the US Department of Commerce continues to maintain the scheme and to accept new registrations.

It's not clear whether Privacy Shield remains a lawful basis for processing the personal data of UK data subjects as they are no longer "in the EU" despite the UK legislation echoing the GDPR. Regardless of which, Privacy Shield offers no protection in practice, and in fact never did. This was the ground on which is was struck down, as its ostensible protections can be overridden by US federal law. So it shouldn't provide (and never should have provided) a legitimate basis for processing.

[yetanotheraoc]

Re: A question remains though

How crafty. By having the child log in with the parent's id, google can first question the child ever accessed any inappropriate content at all. And second insist the parent defacto approved of the content. So this is google putting 100% responsibility on the parent. It's what happens when do the right thing is implemented by lawyers.

[C. P. Cosgrove]

What age limits ?

While I am comfortably over the age of 18 I am not a regular user of YouTube. I find myself searching for tech vids from time to time in connection with what I do on BC and occasionally I watch the odd video for entertainment. I have a Google account but log-in is not automatic on my computer and I normally don't bother logging in on YouTube.

But I have never, ever been asked even to tick a box to certify that I am over 18, or whatever the age limit is. so how can they claim to be moderating the age of their users ?

Chris Cosgrove

[Dinanziame]

Re: What age limits ?

There are some videos that can only be watched if you're logged in. If you try to watch them without being logged in, YouTube asks you to "Sign in to confirm your age", because "this video may be inappropriate for some users".