EU Moves Closer to Setting Age Limits on Teen Social Media
The European Commission has outlined its next steps toward restricting how young people access social media, following an investigation into youth online safety. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen responded to the findings, pointing to data showing European teens spend four to six hours daily on screens and that nearly 60% of young children have faced emotional or psychological difficulties tied to online activity.
Von der Leyen Calls for Clearer Boundaries
Von der Leyen argued that social media platforms weren’t built with children’s wellbeing in mind, and while she maintained that parents should decide when kids get smartphones, she stressed the need for a defined age threshold for social media use. She framed the issue not as whether children can reach social media, but whether and when it should be allowed to reach them. The Commission also plans to roll out a new age-verification app designed to standardize how platforms confirm users’ identities and ages, working alongside upcoming age restrictions.
A Growing Global Trend
This effort mirrors moves already underway elsewhere: Australia has barred under-16s from social media, though enforcement gaps mean many teens still find ways around it. The U.K. intends to introduce a similar under-16 ban next year, and Turkey has already restricted access for users under 15. Within the EU, current signals suggest lawmakers are leaning toward an under-16 restriction, though some member states want the bar set at under-15.
Critics caution that blunt bans may simply push kids toward less-regulated platforms rather than solving the underlying problem, since online connection is now deeply embedded in youth social life. Still, with fresh data in hand, the Commission appears poised to push forward with broader EU-wide restrictions in the near future.