Victoria’s Labor government to introduce laws to unmask cyber bullies and stop bosses from spying on workers.
The state government of Victoria has said it will introduce a tranche of new laws to protect individuals from the pervasive reach of Big Tech.
The laws will come in two distinct packages: one to protect children from harmful and anonymous behaviour online, and the other to prevent invasive workplace surveillance technologies.
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“Social media and AI companies design their platforms to be addictive, and our kids are paying the price,” Victoria’s Premier, Jacinta Allan (pictured), said of the state's soon-to-be-introduced laws to enforce the “unmasking” of “anonymous users hiding behind a screen”.
“If a platform hurts a child, families should be able to take that company to court
“Hiding behind an anonymous account online should never mean you can vilify someone and get away with it.”
Parents must currently prove their child has suffered a psychiatric impairment that passes a ten per cent threshold to bring a social media or AI company before the courts. Under the proposed new laws, that threshold will be removed.
“We’re taking action, because no one should have their mental health impacted by senseless online hate,” said the state’s Minister for Mental Health, Ingrid Stitt.
The Victorian government is also considering extending the reforms to adults. However, the government is proposing another set of laws to protect Victorians from workplace surveillance.
The Allan government has said it wants “No weird, invasive spying on workers”. The new laws will prevent the unnecessary collection of biometric data and monitoring of workers’ emotional states, the use of AI to monitor activity such as bathroom breaks, and provide greater protections against the use of “workplace surveillance and AI to discriminate by race, gender, sexuality, religion or other personal characteristics”.
The laws will also address the growing use of AI in the hiring process, as well as enshrining a “right to know” if workers are being monitored by their employer.
The laws will also require a human to always be in the loop of any AI-based decision-making process where workers’ rights are concerned.
“No Victorian should be watched at work without knowing about it,” Allan said.
“I am sickened by the idea that a pregnant woman’s bathroom breaks or emotions could be tracked, logged, and used against her or her colleagues in a salary decision.
“We cannot allow discrimination to sneak back into the workplace via AI.”
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David Hollingworth
David Hollingworth has been writing about technology for over 20 years, and has worked for a range of print and online titles in his career. He is enjoying getting to grips with cyber security, especially when it lets him talk about Lego.