European Union Plans Social Media Ban for Under-13s

The European Union has announced the draft EU Children's Act, which bans children under 13 from using social media and introduces parental supervision for the 13-15 age group, in order to protect children from risks in the digital world.

Scope of the Regulation and Age Limits

Announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the draft EU Children's Act aims to protect children from harmful content in the digital environment.

With the new regulation, access to social media networks for children under 13 will be completely banned, while teenagers between 13 and 15 will be able to use accounts under parental control.

Restrictions Imposed on Digital Platforms

The comprehensive proposal covers not only social networks, but also video platforms, online video games, and artificial intelligence chatbots.

It is planned that AI companion applications will be kept turned off by default for children and that unwanted communications from strangers will be restricted.

Security and Design Obligations

Under the proposal, platforms are required to perform age verification and design their algorithms to be completely safe for children.

It aims to eliminate addictive features such as infinite scrolling, reward mechanisms, and profiling-based recommendation feeds.

Penal Sanctions and Legislative Process

Technology companies that fail to comply with the rules and fulfill their obligations may face heavy fines of up to 6 percent of their global annual turnover.

The draft law requires the approval of EU member states and the European Parliament to officially enter into force.