Children across Europe will not be allowed to set up their own social media accounts until they are 15 under a new tiered age limit system designed to limit access among minors.
The European Commission is this week set to unveil its landmark EU Kids Act, which is designed to set uniform age limits for children and impose safe design requirements on companies such as Meta and TikTok.
The key policy, to be announced by commission president Ursula von der Leyen this week and published on Thursday, will also impose similar rules on artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots or so-called “companions” that already have access to children and teenagers.
The proposals are still subject to debate and formal adoption, but under a draft proposal social networks would be required to verify the age of any user who opens a new account.
This could be done through EU age-verification tools such as the Irish Government’s new digital wallet, which is being tested. Platforms could also use other age-verification technology from public authorities in relevant countries if it meets privacy and security standards.
It is understood that age verification rules would not apply to accounts that have either been run for a number of years or are associated with other forms of identification including credit cards. But online games will be subject to strict, mandatory age verification.
It is also understood the new proposed minimum age under which a child in the EU can open and run their own social media account, independent of their parents, would be 15.
Brussels is expected to stress that it wants the online environments for children aged between 15 and 18 to meet new “safe by design” standards.
For children aged between 13 and 15, their parents may set up introductory social media accounts on their behalf. These would have limited features including maximum daily screen time and limited numbers of contacts or friends. Parents would have the power to monitor and control these social media accounts through their own app as designated guardians.
For children aged between three and 13, the commission will propose that they can only access content that is strictly age and developmentally appropriate through entirely parent controlled accounts on so-called “child-friendly” services.
The European Commission is expected to say that children younger than three should have no access to social media, and that those caring for children that young should also limit their own screen time around them.
Social networks and AI platforms covered by the EU Kids Act will be expected to meet new safety design standards that ban addictive design features such as “infinite scroll” or reward systems, including “streaks”, which encourage daily social media activity.
Recommender systems would also be limited to avoid algorithms that send children down “rabbit holes”. Children’s accounts would be automatically designed to be private. Unknown users would be restricted from adding or approaching children online.
Platforms would also be obliged to make it easier for children to report harmful content. The safety standards of online platforms would have to be verified before they could be deemed safe for children to access.
The new EU Kids Act will use existing enforcement powers under the Digital Services Act and the AI Act. Platforms will be expected to show they have met the requirements of the new online child safety law.
It is understood there will be scope for member states to adopt the proposed age limits into their own laws. Here, the Government has consistently said the age limit for social media in Ireland should be 16 in line with the existing digital age of consent.
The commission’s proposals are set to be considered by ministers in a meeting chaired by Minister for Communications Patrick O’Donovan this month as part of Ireland’s presidency of the Council of the European Union.