EU poised to ban social media for under-13s
A new expert report backed by Ursula von der Leyen paves the way for EU-wide age restrictions, setting up a major compliance shift for social media platforms.
An expert panel convened by the European Commission has recommended banning children under 13 from using social media and addictive platforms like YouTube. The proposal, published on Monday alongside a Eurobarometer survey showing widespread public concern, is expected to form the basis of legislation unveiled by Commission president Ursula von der Leyen as early as September.
Von der Leyen explicitly endorsed the move. "Just as we do not give our children keys to the car before they have their licence or let them buy alcohol until they are legally allowed, we need to set the age at which they can legally access social media," she said. The push aims to replace the current patchwork of national rules, where minimum ages range from 15 in Greece to 16 in France and Spain, with a single EU-wide threshold.
For tech companies, the recommendation threatens a significant operational shift. The expert report goes beyond age gating, urging platforms to minimise harm by limiting features like infinite scrolling. Teenagers currently spend between four and six hours a day on these services, with more than half reporting psychological or emotional harm.
Enforcement has long been the stumbling block for such bans due to privacy concerns around identity checks. However, the Commission has now developed a verification app that acts as a trusted third party. Users verify their age with an identity document and a selfie, and the app sends only a "yes" or "no" response to the platform without storing or sharing personal data.
Political consensus is not yet guaranteed. While a large majority of member states and the European Parliament support a bloc-wide minimum age, Estonia remains unconvinced and Italy wants the threshold set as low as possible. Negotiations will likely settle on the lowest acceptable age to hesitant member states, though the final law may permit countries to enforce higher limits. Security researchers recently identified vulnerabilities in the Commission's verification app, but Brussels has time to refine the technology before any legislation is finalised.
