Abstract
South African children who are on social media platforms face both opportunities and challenges. These platforms form an integral part of their lives, which increases the concern of their safety and overall wellbeing. Children are exposed to many harmful situations on the internet, which can have detrimental effects on them almost immediately, and often extend into adulthood. These situations need to be identified, and legislation is required to be enforced to protect them. This dissertation will seek to identify the legal protection mechanisms which currently exist in South Africa, and the extent to which they are enforced. It will further seek to establish whether enforcement is effective in safeguarding children on social media platforms. In South Africa, protection of children is high priority due to the constant development in the digital age. Children are compromised by many risks, which include; online predators, scams, dangerous content, sharing of posts they regret, misinformation, cyberbullying and harassment, social media addiction and targeted by advertisements and inappropriate content. After the outbreak of COVID-19, the world was forced to use online platforms to avoid contracting the virus, this led to more risks which children were exposed to. The ease of access to technology and digital platforms further exposes children to possible risks. Children in today’s age may be exposed to a smaller amount of bullying at school but over the internet bullying has increased, and children are now victims of cyberbullying. Legislative measures such as the Children’s Act 38 of 2005, the Films and Publications Act 65 of 1996, and the Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020 exist to govern some of these situations. Social media platforms are expected to comply with the above statutes to make the online environment a safer environment and ensure that the children are protected. With the rapid change in technology, new challenges present itself which is challenging for legislation to regulate.