The UAE’s new social media age restrictions place the heaviest legal burden on tech platforms, but authorities are urging parents not to become the “loophole” that allows children to bypass the system.
Following the recent Cabinet Resolution banning children under the age of 15 from creating or operating personal social media accounts, a senior official has clarified the exact role parents are expected to play as the new digital safety regime takes effect.
Eng Abdulrahman Al Marzouqi, Director of Policies and Programmes at the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), emphasised that while platforms are legally mandated to verify age and suspend underage accounts, parents must actively support the transition.
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“The greatest responsibility falls on the platforms themselves; they are obligated to verify the user’s age,” Al Marzouqi said. “However, there is an expectation from parents to use the tools provided, to support the prevention of circumvention.”
Parents urged not create accounts on kids’ behalf
One of the most critical warnings from authorities is directed at parents who might consider helping their children dodge the new rules. “We do not expect parents to go and create accounts on behalf of their children and hand them the phones so they can use these accounts,” Al Marzouqi said. “These actions would constitute a form of circumvention that the resolution has prohibited. We hope parents will support this direction and use the tools that will be made available to them on these platforms.”
Under the new law, platforms are required to implement robust, technically precise age-verification systems, moving away from simple “self-declaration” where users merely input a date of birth. This could include linking with government digital identity portals, using biometric facial recognition, or employing artificial intelligence to determine a user’s age.
For existing accounts belonging to users under 15, platforms have been given a 12-month grace period to identify and permanently delete them.
Which age group is allowed to use social media?
While children under 15 face a strict ban on personal accounts, those aged 15 and 16 are permitted to use social media but not with the same unrestricted access as adults.
Platforms are legally required to provide mandatory parental control tools for this specific age bracket, and authorities expect parents to use them actively. “These tools will assist parents in controlling certain features related to social media platforms for the demographic above 15,” Al Marzouqi explained. “This includes determining when they can use the platforms, the duration of use, the type of content they are exposed to, and specific privacy settings.”
The ‘Child Influencer’ exception
The new law does not spell the end for young content creators, provided their digital presence is strictly managed by an adult.
Al Marzouqi clarified that the resolution prohibits children from creating or logging into platforms themselves. However, if a parent or guardian owns and directly manages the account, children can still participate in creating positive content.
“As long as the parents are the ones logging into the accounts and managing them directly, and the child is participating in the creation of purposeful and positive content, there is no issue,” he said. “In this case, the child is only creating the content… but the person actually using the account is the adult.”
This distinction aims to protect children from the hidden dangers of social media, such as exposure to inappropriate content, interaction with strangers, and screen addiction, while still allowing them an outlet for creativity.
“The idea is that the content creator makes the content, but the child does not log into the account where they might be exposed to unsuitable material or interact with strangers,” Al Marzouqi added. “If the account is managed by the parent, there will be no negative impact on them. On the contrary, we support them in continuing to create purposeful and positive content.”
To ensure the public understands the new regulations and the shared responsibilities involved, the TDRA, in collaboration with the Digital Wellbeing Council and other government entities, will soon roll out a comprehensive community awareness campaign.
