Adultification: Chamber approves project to protect children on social media

The Speaker of the House was moved by civil society organizations. Hugo Motta (Republicans-PB) intended to include the proposal in the working group that will discuss similar projects, but changed his mind after a meeting with representatives of the Alana Institute and Judge Vanessa Cavalieri of the Children and Youth Court of Rio de Janeiro. Participants in the meeting told UOL that the Speaker of the House was "moved" by the exposure of the harm children and adolescents suffer online and decided to expedite the vote on the bill.

The bill's approval represents a victory for Motta. After the pro-Bolsonaro mutiny that paralyzed the House for over 30 years to pressure a vote on amnesty for those imprisoned in the coup, the Speaker managed to reverse the discussion agenda and approve a proposal with the support of all parties.

The important thing today is that the Chamber of Deputies will be telling Brazil that, regardless of the political differences within the chamber, we do want the protection of our children and adolescents in the digital environment. And this is very important for the country. Hugo Motta, Speaker of the Chamber

Motta forged an agreement with the opposition to secure approval. The PL and Novo parties threatened to obstruct the bill's vote, but the bill's rapporteur, Jadyel Alencar (Republicans-PI), accepted some of the group's suggestions. The Speaker of the House also pressured the parties not to submit amendments—sections that could alter the bill's basic text.

The bill establishes rules for big tech companies to adopt measures to protect minors and holds digital platforms accountable for failing to do so. Companies will have to create mechanisms to prevent young people from accessing illegal, harmful, and inappropriate material, including pornography.

Big tech companies will have to notify authorities about content that violates children and adolescents. The proposal requires companies to retain the data of users responsible for the content, materials produced, and shared for six months.