The Alana Institute’s complaint to the Public Prosecutor of São Paulo shows that the profiles of child influencers were used to promote gambling on Instagram
After the controversy over gambling games, such as “Jogo do Tigrinho”, another factor causes concern: the diffusion of these titles by children and adolescents on social networks. This is what emerges from a complaint from the Alana Institute to the Public Prosecutor of Sao Paulo (MPSP), which identified around ten profiles of child influencers who use the service Instagram to promote games that resemble slot machines.
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Wanted by CanaltechTHE Objective stressed that it does not allow “content potentially aimed at children under 18 that attempts to promote online games involving monetary values” and that it removes publications of this type.
Gambling promoted by child influencers
The discovery comes from the group that works to defend the rights of children and adolescents. In the complaint sent to the MPSP, the institute brought data from an investigation carried out in the first four months of 2024, which led to the discovery of around ten profiles managed or played by young people aged 6 to 17 who advertised these games.
Similar to what it happened with adult profiles, child influencers posted Instagram stories to promote gambling. The young people used various elements to convince people, including phrases such as “with just R$30 I earned R$120” and “you just can’t earn money who doesn’t want it”, with the guarantee of high earnings.
Another way to promote the games was to post tutorials that taught how to place bets online. According to the institution, six gambling games were identified during the investigation, but the names of the games were not revealed in the note sent to FreeGameGuide this Monday (24).
Unreturned complaints
The Alana Institute also reported an inconsistency in Instagram’s reporting tool. In the investigation, the group reported 51 publications, but only 12 received responses from the social network. Despite this, the platform reported that the content did not violate its guidelines.
According to the coordinator of the Children and Consumption program, Maria Mello, these cases highlight the permissiveness of the platform which exposes children and adolescents to messages that normalize and encourage the risky practice of betting while tolerating aggressive and negligent advertising.
“Because they exploit the influence of child celebrities, these contents are classified as advertising for children, a practice prohibited in Brazil,” he said. “This reinforces the false idea that gaming is safe and common for younger age groups, further highlighting Instagram’s serious security and liability failure.”
Mello also notes that exposure to online gambling advertising can cause “irreversible damage”, especially during childhood and adolescence, phases considered peculiar to human development.
It is worth mentioning that this is not the first controversy involving gambling on the social network. In June, several Instagram users complained about profiles promoting Jogo do Tigrinho.
Gambling advertising is illegal in Brazil
The complaint is another controversy involving online gambling, which is illegal in Brazil under the Criminal Offenses Law (Law Decree No. 3,688/1941). The same goes for the promotion of games of this type, explains lawyer Daniela Poli Vlavianos, partner of Poli Advogados.
“The spread of gambling games that resemble slot machines, such as Jogo do Tigrinho, is illegal in Brazil,” he said in an interview with FreeGameGuide. “The practice of gambling is classified as a criminal offense pursuant to Legislative Decree No. 3.688/1941, in particular in articles 50 et seq..”
The lawyer also points out that the Statute on Children and Adolescents (ECA) prohibits the sale or offer of lottery tickets or equivalent to children and adolescents by any means. Therefore, the dissemination of these games by child influencers constitutes a violation of Brazilian legislation.
Responsibility
Other issues should be noted when promoting these games by child influencers. The lawyer further explained that legal guardians of young people who promote this type of game may fall under Article 244-B of the Court of Auditors, which provides for the crime of bribery or aiding and abetting the bribery of a minor, with a prison sentence of one to four years.
“Furthermore, they can be held liable for criminal offenses under Legislative Decree No. 3.688/1941,” said Daniela Poli Vlavianos. “As regards young people, if they are under 18 years old, they are subject to the socio-educational measures provided for by the Court of Auditors, in particular those listed in Article 112, which include everything from a warning to hospitalization in an educational institution , depending on the seriousness of the infringement and the circumstances involved.”
Furthermore, the Objective does not escape the possible implications due to practice. “According to Article 19 of the Marco Civil da Internet, providers of Internet applications, such as Meta/Instagram, can be held civilly liable for damages resulting from content generated by third parties if, after a specific court order, they do not take measures to make illicit content unavailable,” he informed.
Partner Poli Advogados also notes that Article 70 of the Consumer Protection Code (CDC) provides that all those involved in the supply chain of products and services are jointly liable for harm caused to consumers, including advertising and the promotion of illegal products.
“If it were proven that Meta/Instagram permitted or neglected to monitor illegal content, such as underage gambling, it could be held jointly and severally liable for the damages caused,” he concluded.
What does Meta say?
Check out Meta’s full ranking:
We do not allow children under the age of 13 to access our platforms, except in cases of accounts managed by a responsible person. Our policies also do not allow content potentially aimed at under 18s that attempts to promote online gambling involving monetary values, and we remove posts of this type. We use a combination of technology and human reviewers to identify content and accounts that violate our policies, and we are always working to improve our approach to a safe environment for everyone.
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Source: Terra
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