The Australian Department of Home Affairs aims to have more supervision over the algorithms of social media platforms and encryption technology to help tackle cyber abuse. Speaking at the parliamentary inquiry into internet safety on Feb.1, Brendan Dowling, the digital and technology policy head of the department of home affairs, said the department was increasingly worried that social media platforms did not consider safety when they developed their products. “We’re deeply concerned that innovation in digital tools, including anonymising technology like end-to-end encryption, is not striking the right balance between the benefits and the risks of harm,” he told the House Select Committee on Social Media and Online Safety on Feb. 1. According to Dowling, online safety concerning digital tools was a challenging policy arena, and the department was not against encryption. However, he said that social media platforms were increasingly launching the technology without considering how to prioritise users’ …