EU Proposes New Regulations for Children's Social Media Use

The European Union has proposed the EU Kids Act, which seeks to ban social media use for children under 13. Ursula von der Leyen stated that the act aims to create clearer boundaries for children in the digital environment, similar to existing safeguards in daily life.

Children aged 13 to 15 would be permitted to use social media under parental control. The proposed regulations would apply to social media, video-sharing services, online video games, AI companions, and chatbots for users under 18.

Key measures include restricting addictive features, implementing age-assurance systems, and developing child-safe algorithms. Companies failing to comply could face fines of up to six percent of their global annual turnover.

However, Daniel Friedlaender, head of CCIA Europe, expressed concerns regarding privacy and potential conflicts with existing EU regulations, arguing that large-scale collection of age information could pose security risks and create overlapping legal requirements.