STRASBOURG, France: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed a wide-ranging plan to protect children from online dangers, including a ban on social media for children under 13 and new rules requiring online services to create safer accounts for children.
The proposal follows similar measures in Australia, the United Kingdom, China, India, Turkey, and several European Union countries. Governments have raised concerns about the effects of platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and ChatGPT on children's mental health and safety.
Australia's difficulties in enforcing its world-first ban on social media for children under 16 could also create challenges for Europe.
"Today, our children are engaging with some of the most sophisticated technology ever created, and it was not created with children's well-being and development in mind," von der Leyen told a press conference.
She said the proposed EU Kids Act would establish clear rules for children's use of digital services.
The proposal must be negotiated with EU member states and the European Parliament in the coming months before it can become law. Under the plan, children aged 13 to 15 would have accounts controlled by their parents.
Social media and video-sharing services, online video games, and AI companions and chatbots aimed at children under 18 would also be subject to a set of rules.
The measures would ban addictive features, recommendation feeds based on user profiles, infinite scrolling, reward systems designed to keep users engaged, and unwanted contact from strangers. AI companions and chatbots would have to be turned off by default.
Online platforms would have to design algorithms that are safe for children and provide simple parental controls. They would also have to offer tools that allow users to block or mute others.
Companies would have to check users' ages when they create accounts through age-assurance systems. Those who fail to follow the rules could face fines of up to six percent of their global annual sales. They would also have to pay a supervisory fee to help fund regulators.
The tech industry lobbying group CCIA Europe, whose members include Google and Meta, warned that the proposal could pose privacy risks and conflict with other EU laws.
CCIA Europe head Daniel Friedlaender said collecting age and identity information, as well as data linking children with their parents or guardians on such a large scale, could create security risks.
He also said the proposed Kids Act could create overlapping and duplicated legal requirements that could weaken protections for children and consumers.
