EU urged to prioritise online safety over social media bans for children
Von der Leyen is expected to announce an age limit, although officials have provided few details, including whether restrictions would apply only to social media or also to other platforms such as gaming apps.
More than 130 children’s rights, digital rights and mental health organisations and experts have urged the European Union to make digital platforms safer for children rather than relying on blanket social media bans, AFP reported.
According to AFP, the groups have called on the EU to establish a Europe-wide framework for digital safety ahead of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s planned announcement on measures to strengthen protections for children online.
Von der Leyen is expected to announce an age limit, although officials have provided few details, including whether restrictions would apply only to social media or also to other platforms such as gaming apps.
In July, von der Leyen said she supported giving children gradual access to social media while ensuring safety features on digital platforms are enabled by default.
The 132 organisations and experts, including 5Rights Foundation, Amnesty International and Center for Countering Digital Hate, opposed measures such as blanket bans that they said could shift “the burden of safety onto parents or children”.
The groups instead called for stronger regulation of the technology children use, including enforcement of the EU’s Digital Services Act.
“It must ensure that proportionate age restrictions go hand-in-hand with robust safety measures so that digital environments both protect and empower children, by design and default,” they wrote.
The signatories recommended that the EU establish minimum standards for digital products and services “to be deemed safe” for different age groups up to 18, alongside age-based restrictions on high-risk features.
“Europeans have had enough of tech companies exploiting our children, but we also expect more from our leaders than quick-fix bans on kids,” said Leanda Barrington, executive director of 5Rights Foundation.
“Children need and deserve safe, age-appropriate digital services. The EU has the power to set a bar and require tech companies to prove they meet it before accessing children,” she added.
Von der Leyen is facing pressure from different sides over the issue.
Estonia’s digital minister told AFP that social media platforms should be responsible for making changes, while French President Emmanuel Macron called for “European” rules banning social media for under-15s in a letter to von der Leyen.
Macron previously attempted to introduce a similar measure in France, but the country’s top court struck down the proposed law on freedom of expression grounds in August.
Von der Leyen is considering restrictions for under-13s or under-15s ahead of her annual State of the European Union speech on September 16, officials said, according to AFP.
