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By Luca Bertuzzi
Published on •Updated
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday the EU could propose a bloc-wide social media ban for children as early as this summer, amid mounting pressure from member states to strengthen online protections for minors.
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Support for stricter controls has grown in recent months, with France, Spain, Greece and Denmark leading calls for measures to shield children from what governments describe as addictive online platforms.
“We are witnessing the lightning speed at which technology is advancing – and how it penetrates every corner of childhood and adolescence,” von der Leyen told delegates at the European Summit on Artificial Intelligence and Children in Copenhagen.
Several EU countries are already pursuing national legislation, although Brussels has faced pressure to maintain a harmonised approach across the bloc’s single market.
The European Commission has established an independent expert panel on online child safety to assess possible measures aimed at tackling issues including addiction and social anxiety among minors.
“Without pre-empting the panel’s findings, I believe we must consider a social media delay. Depending on the results, we could come forward with a legal proposal this summer,” she said.
The proposed timeline could allow Brussels to move ahead of new French legislation expected to come into force in September. The law would require platforms including Instagram and TikTok to block users under the age of 15 and suspend existing accounts.
One of the main challenges for the EU has been finding a common technical solution for age verification. Platforms would be expected to use the system to ensure only users above a certain age can access their services.
Von der Leyen said “discussions about a minimum age for social media can no longer be ignored”, referring to an EU age-verification app modelled on the bloc’s EU Digital COVID Certificate system.
While the Commission has formally recommended the app to member states, several governments have reacted cautiously. Cybersecurity experts have also raised concerns over potential technical vulnerabilities.
The EU is not alone in considering tougher restrictions on children’s social media use. Australia and Indonesia have already introduced similar measures.
Meanwhile, Brussels has placed platforms including Instagram and Snapchat under scrutiny under the Digital Services Act over concerns they failed to protect minors adequately. The bloc is also considering banning certain addictive design features under the proposed Digital Fairness Act.
“We all know that sustainable change does not happen overnight. But if we are slow and hesitant, it will be another entire generation of children that pays the price,” von der Leyen said.
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