Michel Iliev
According to the Secretary of State of the Ministry of Economic Development and Digitalization, Michel Iliev, “the phenomenon of ‘information garbage’ has grown to the point where it is clear that there is a limit.”
“I think 15 years ago we would not have assumed that things would degenerate in this direction. You need data to do that, and unfortunately we’re already at that point – now we need to think about how to remedy the situation. There will certainly be consultations this year. We are not saying that we will be banning anything before the end of the year. The Digital Services Act, which we plan to implement in the fall, provides regulation for large platforms,” Iliev told TV8.
It is, in particular, about the creation of levers that will allow to promptly report about fake content and violations. Now Moldova has practically no such tools, and users often do not understand where to address with complaints. At the same time, the rapid development of artificial intelligence increases the challenges and threats, especially for children.
What to do with “information garbage”?
“We are talking about a large volume of information garbage, and it is this garbage that poses a danger to children. This phenomenon has intensified with the development of artificial intelligence, which has changed everything a lot. What has really changed in the last two years is the speed at which AI is developing and the complexity of the products it creates. When it became part of the public perception – because AI was talked about 10 years ago – then people didn’t see it as a risk. Until you encounter cyberattacks, tampering, fake accounts, or money theft based on these technologies – you didn’t realize the risk. It’s become much more risky now than it used to be,” the secretary of state said.
According to her, consultations to develop “protective” mechanisms have already begun on the platform of the presidential administration. The discussions involve parents, teachers, i.e. the environment in which children spend a significant part of their time. It is also planned to involve various ministries, psychologists and the IT community to take into account the technical side of the problem.
“Digital Shield”
The ministry emphasizes that the goal is not a ban, but the creation of a so-called “digital shield”. It involves training teachers to recognize alarm signals in children, as well as increasing the digital literacy of parents, especially among people over 50 years old. Now, because of the lack of understanding of the processes in the online environment, many people tend to solve the problem radically – “turn it off”, as it once happened with television. But a ban for children has the opposite effect.
