Part of tough new laws to protect children from the worst of the internet
The European Union is moving to severely curtail or even stop the use of social media by teenagers up to the age of 18.
Under tough new laws set out by the EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in her annual state of the union address today, the social media giants like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and more will be completely off limits to children under-13, and use will be severely limited for older teens.
The EU will announce that:
- No Use for Under 13s
- Children and teenagers aged under 15 will not be able to open a social media account without express parental or guardian permission.
- Special, closely regulated ‘child friendly’ alternatives will the only option for kids aged between 13-15.
- Use of these will be limited to one hour a day
- Mandatory “safe design” for users aged 15-17, with burden of proof on platforms to prove safety of features
The new ‘EU Kids Act’ will be fully outlined tomorrow (Thursday) by Ms von der Leyen and her colleague Henna Virkkunen, the EU’s executive vice-president of tech sovereignty, security and democracy.
In some areas, the go further than recent regulations introduced by countries like Australia – by requiring the social media companies to prove they are in line with regulations – and face penalties if they are not.
Ms von der Leyen said that “many perceive the power of Big Tech as overwhelming” and feel it’s “impossible to roll back”.
But she vowed to take action, saying parents do not have to just accept that the big digital companies can push addictive features as an online staple or children being drawn into consuming extreme digital content or girls’ photos being sexualised with AI.
The “burden of proof” should be on Big Tech to ensure that their platforms are safe for minors, she stressed.
Von der Leyen’s speech confirmed new reglulations that children aged from 13 to under 15 could have what she called “mini accounts” – set up by parents or guardians – with limited features and a one-hour screen-time limit per day.
“It is us who decide our rules, not Big Tech,” she stressed.
She also confirmed that the Union’s long-planned Digital Fairness Act – a push to strengthen online consumer rules – would be presented this autumn, specifying that it would set out a “wider framework” for dealing with addictive features on platforms.
The EU laws are expected to be fast-tracked – after a slew of recent reports highlighted the dangers of social media for teens and the damage that is already being done.
However, the EU’s efforts are likely to face fierce opposition from the social media giants like Meta and X – who face a big hit to revenues and the prospect of having to spend money on regulation.
This battle could prove a challenge for the Government here in Ireland, where many of the big social media platforms have their European HQs.
