Scroll, like, repeat: how the EU plans to boost children's protection online

93 per cent of EU citizens are acrophobic astir children's intelligence health. 92 per cent place cyberbullying arsenic the superior online threat, according to the State of the Digital Decade Eurobarometer 2025.

Brussels has adopted a tougher stance connected online kid safety.

Last week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that a caller “age verification app is technically acceptable and soon disposable for citizens to use”.

The strategy requires citizens to verify their property to entree online platforms without sharing idiosyncratic data.

EU subordinate states are already taking decisive actions. France has enacted a prohibition targeting users nether 15. Spain, Austria, Greece, Ireland, Denmark, and the Netherlands are gearing up to present akin rules soon.

Christel Schaldemose, Member of the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats successful the European Parliament and rapporteur of the non-legislative study connected an EU-wide minimum property for societal media, senses hesitation successful the Commission’s actions.

“I don't cognize if they're delaying [actions] connected purpose, but I deliberation that they are excessively slow. Like this we extremity up with a fragmented interior marketplace due to the fact that truthful galore countries person already suggested an property limit”.

Children and online platforms

Social media has go a pervasive and risky situation for children, mostly owed to addictive designs, changeless connectivity, dense personalisation, and AI tools.

In 2022, 96 per cent of 15-year-olds were progressive connected societal media, with 37 per cent spending much than 3 hours a time connected these platforms. Female teens thin to usage societal media more, astatine 42 per cent compared to 32 per cent of their antheral counterparts, a 2025 Joint Research Centre (JRC) survey found.

Among 9 to 15-year-olds, regular usage often hits the three-hour mark; 78 per cent of teens aged 13 to 17 cheque their devices astatine slightest erstwhile an hour; a 4th admit to struggling with dysfunctional net habits, arsenic stated successful the European Parliament’s non-legislative study of November 2025.

Almost 99 per cent of teens aged 16-17 participated actively (creating idiosyncratic profiles, posting messages, utilizing Facebook, X, etc) connected societal media successful 2025, according to the Eurobarometer.

For Schaldemose, the Commission’s sheet connected kid information online is simply a affirmative archetypal step. Experts’ heavy cognition volition efficiently counsel the Commission’s actions, she said.

The JRC warns that uncontrolled societal media usage harms children's intelligence health, raising slump and anxiousness levels. Harmful content, specified arsenic violent, sexualised, and pro‑eating‑disorder material, tin impact children’s encephalon improvement and societal behaviours.

60 per cent of young females amusement slump symptoms compared to 35 per cent of males, and 65 per cent acquisition anxiousness arsenic opposed to 41 per cent of males, the JRC survey reveals.

As galore net platforms are chiefly targeted to adults, their advertising-driven concern models person superior repercussions connected younger users, fostering dependence.

36 per cent of adolescents successful Europe, Central Asia, and Canada support changeless interaction via societal media.11 per cent amusement problematic societal media use, with girls (13 per cent) reporting higher rates than boys (9 per cent), according to a 2024 World Health Organisation (WHO) report.

Bans, a nationalist competence

On April 8, 2026, Greece’s premier curate Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced a societal media prohibition for children nether 15. The law, taking effect successful January 2027 and inactive pending Parliament approval, blocks minors from societal media accounts, requiring platforms to enforce strict property verification oregon look fiscal penalties.

The determination was triggered by information showing that 75% of Greek superior schoolhouse children were progressive connected societal media, portion astir 48% of teenagers reported antagonistic intelligence wellness effects.

Public sentiment besides peaked, with 80 per cent supporting a prohibition aft the March 2026 US verdict holding large tech platforms liable for addictive app design. Building connected the occurrence of Greece’s 2024 schoolhouse smartphone ban, the authorities cited "lifeless" students and slumber deprivation arsenic the restriction’s catalyst.

Greece joins different EU countries: France approved a measure successful January 2026 to prohibition societal media for under-15s, citing a "health emergency" and the request to support minors from cyberbullying and intelligence harm. February 2026 saw Spain denote plans for an under-16s prohibition to “tame the integer Wild West," portion Austria, Denmark, and Slovenia are drafting bans for nether the ages of 14, 15, and 15, respectively.

Italy and Ireland are exploring bans for under-15s and under-16s respectively, portion Germany and different states statement property limits oregon “youth versions” of platforms. They are motivated by a surge successful intelligence wellness issues and wanting to clasp tech giants accountable for addictive level designs, pursuing the precedent acceptable by Australia’s 2025 world-first under-16 ban.

Self-reported birthdates are ineffective. Implementation has been done done systems similar integer wallets oregon individuality tokens, but the European Commission’s brand-new property verification app "will let users to beryllium their property erstwhile accessing online platforms, conscionable similar shops inquire for impervious of property for radical buying [alcohol]”, according to von der Leyen.

Platforms person the main responsibility, and nationalist regulators enforce compliance done oversight and fines. While EU-wide rules similar the Digital Services Act (DSA) and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) found baseline protections for minors, nationalist bans spell further by mounting strict property limits and expanding accountability for tech companies.

However, opposing governmental figures, similar members of Spain’s Vox enactment and Italian lawmakers, see these bans excessive authorities intervention, arguing that education, parental control, and integer literacy would beryllium much effectual than outright restrictions.

This position is besides shared by consumers' rights advocates; Olivia Brown, Policy Officer astatine planetary consumers radical Euroconsumers, considers broad bans a governmental shortcut that fto platforms disconnected the hook.

"Banning societal media doesn't marque the net safer. It conscionable moves the occupation retired of sight. What minors request is information built into platforms by design, existent idiosyncratic controls, and algorithms they tin signifier themselves, not doors that are simply slammed shut, lone to plaything wide unfastened the infinitesimal they crook 18.”

Moves towards EU-wide regulation

The contented is politically sensitive, and an EU-wide prohibition risks aggravating polarisation. Instead, the Commission is archetypal releasing the age-verification app arsenic a instrumentality for subordinate states to instrumentality their ain nationalist bans.

First conceived successful 2025, the app is designed arsenic a method model that tin beryllium integrated into nationalist integer wallets oregon abstracted applications to verify users’ ages. To corroborate their age, users indispensable download an app, supply consent for information use, scan an individuality papers (including its chip), and implicit facial recognition. This process whitethorn request to beryllium repeated regularly, and platforms could necessitate verification each clip users entree age-restricted services.

Concerns originate from its complexity, privateness implications, easiness of circumvention (such arsenic via VPNs), and fears that it could displacement work distant from platforms, dissimilar different EU-wide regulatory tools.

One is the GDPR, adopted successful 2016 and implemented by 2018–2020, acceptable strict rules connected children’s data, the default property of integer consent astatine 16 (with flexibility down to 13) requires parental support for younger users.

The revised Audiovisual Media Services Directive, effectual from 2020, introduced age-rating systems and parental controls connected streaming platforms, alongside strict bans connected harmful contented specified arsenic kid exploitation material. Then, successful 2021, the EU launched its broader kid online information strategy, combining funding, research, and voluntary codes of behaviour to code risks similar grooming and disinformation.

More recently, the Commission projected applicable measures specified arsenic private-by-default accounts for minors, and limits connected addictive features similar autoplay and infinite-scrolling. Parts of the AI Act, with bans progressive arsenic of February 2025, specifically prohibit systems that usage subliminal techniques oregon exploit children’s vulnerabilities to distort their behaviour. The Digital Fairness Act, expected for a ceremonial connection successful precocious 2026, volition tighten level plan rules by banning "dark patterns" and addictive features similar infinite scrolling.

At the centre of this model is the DSA, a landmark regularisation to overhaul online platforms. Proposed by the Commission successful 2020, it was agreed by the European Parliament and Council successful 2022 and came into unit successful February 2024 aft a phased rollout.

The DSA requires platforms to support users, with minors arsenic a priority. These see safer default settings, contented moderation, and restrictions connected targeted advertising. It besides establishes a caller enforcement strategy involving nationalist Digital Services Coordinators and EU-level oversight.

Post-DSA, EU citizens saw much transparency, stronger idiosyncratic rights, and limits successful harmful oregon exploitative practices. Users present person clearer ways to study and entreaty contented decisions, portion minors payment from stricter privateness protections and reduced vulnerability to targeted ads.

The interaction connected integer platforms

Social media property restrictions importantly deed teen reach: businesses suffer a large societal radical that drives online activity, starring to reduced advertisement impressions and postulation revenue.

Online platforms trust heavy connected teens and children for their advertisement revenue. Age limits connected societal media tin trim it due to the fact that they shrink the fig of young users and marque it harder to people them with ads.

Compliance costs whitethorn emergence arsenic companies indispensable heighten age-assurance systems and parental-consent processes. These are costly and analyzable owed to the request for precocious individuality verification and information extortion technologies.

A prohibition connected addictive plan features and engagement algorithms successful societal media necessitates merchandise redesign, expanding engineering costs and delaying EU marketplace launches. A displacement towards safer contented whitethorn strain budgets.

According to Schaldemose, large companies indispensable make “new platforms with a wholly antithetic concern exemplary that protects children”.

Companies tin besides look stricter ineligible risks successful the lawsuit of a regularisation violation. The Parliament projected holding level owners personally accountable for superior and repeated breaches of insignificant extortion provisions.

“They're the 1 who marque the platforms available. If we hold connected an property limit, the work is decidedly connected the companies successful lawsuit of violations”, Schaldemose told Euronews.

Europe needs to velocity up

For Schaldemose, the Commission is acting excessively slowly. It announced the sheet successful September, but it lone started moving successful March.

Some subordinate states are already reportedly opposing the app. “The longer it takes for the Commission to travel up with a proposal, the much apt it is we person a fragmented marketplace and loopholes”, she claimed.

“I person go impatient with the Commission. It looks similar subordinate states are besides a spot impatient due to the fact that they are besides pushing”, Schaldemose said.

Privacy and information sharing issues cannot beryllium an excuse anymore. “In the past 2 years, we person developed tools that bash not compromise idiosyncratic information and safety”, she added.

The Parliament volition proceed to propulsion until the Commission finds a tenable solution. “We request to enactment astatine European level, and the Parliament is wide connected this”, Schaldemose concluded.