France approves under-15 social media ban, testing EU tech rules
France has become the first EU nation to ban social media for children under 15, a landmark move that pits national efforts to curb online harms against European digital regulations and poses steep enforcement challenges for tech platforms.
French lawmakers adopted a bill on Tuesday prohibiting children under 15 from using social media platforms. The legislation, which also bans mobile phones in high schools, is the final major policy push of Emmanuel Macron’s presidency before he leaves office next year. The government wants the rules to take effect by September.
The vote follows mounting public pressure and lawsuits from French families who blame TikTok for teen suicides linked to harmful content. Children’s advocates heavily supported the measure. “We’ve been campaigning for this bill from the start because, frankly, we have no other option, no other way to counter tech giants,” said Gaëlle Berbonde. “The only thing we can do is protect our children, just as we protect our children from drinking alcohol.”
A test for EU tech regulation
As the first blanket ban of its kind in the bloc, the French law immediately collided with the European Union’s Digital Services Act. The European Commission warned that the initial draft overlapped with the DSA, which already sets strict safety standards for internet platforms. Lawmakers were forced into last-minute negotiations on Monday to amend the text and secure compliance with EU law before Tuesday’s final vote.
For social media companies, the amended law demands complex technical workarounds. Platforms will be required to implement stringent age verification for all new accounts and figure out how to identify and suspend existing users under 15. Ines Legendre, a legal advisor for online protection group e-Enfance, noted the practical hurdles. “We’ll also have to address the issue of existing accounts for those under 15. How do we identify them? How do we suspend them? And then there’s the question of age verification for all new accounts that will come into effect,” she said.
Opposition politicians and digital rights advocates argue the law is unworkable. The left-wing France Unbowed party voted against the bill, warning it would effectively end online anonymity and prove impossible to enforce. A review to determine whether the bill complies with the French Constitution is also expected, which could delay the September rollout.
The legislation targets a deeply entrenched habit among French youth. A December report by France’s health watchdog found that 90 percent of children aged 12 to 17 use smartphones daily, with 58 percent using them for social networks. Half of teenagers spend between two and five hours a day on their devices, exposing them to documented risks like reduced self-esteem and content promoting self-harm and drug use. Educational platforms and online encyclopedias are exempt from the ban.
