Access to children’s electronic devices by adults supervising them should be allowed to protect their interests and ensure safety, according to recommendations by Hong Kong’s Law Reform Commission for proposed legislation to curb cybercrimes.
But the wide-ranging recommendations, published by the commission on Friday and to be submitted to the government for consideration, stopped short of including a public interest defence to exempt whistle-blowers.
The report also suggested that acts endangering national security would be treated as aggravated offences, with interference in computer systems that could cost lives punishable by life imprisonment.
“We draw the line based on the subjective purpose of access, rather than the relationship with the child or protected individual … It could be parents, guardians, teachers,” said senior counsel Derek Chan Ching-lung, chairman of the commission’s cybercrime subcommittee.
“For example, if parents notice their child chatting with an unknown person and suspect the child might be deceived, they may check the conversations to protect the child’s interests. But that does not mean they can view everything on the phone.”
Chan stressed that the exempted access must be for the protected person’s benefit and be limited to reasonably necessary content.
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