Earlier this week, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez presented his plan to protect Spanish children “from the digital Wild West” at the World Government Summit in Dubai. The Spanish government will introduce a ban on social media for children under 16.
"Today, our children are exposed to a space they should never have been allowed to enter on their own - a space full of addiction, abuse, pornography, manipulation and violence," Sanchez said.
Spain is not alone in this. More and more European governments are considering taking action against the often uncontrolled use of social media by minors.
"Minors are particularly at risk of long-term harm, given that they are still developing cognitively," explains Paul O. Richter of the Brussels think tank Bruegel, adding: "There are numerous research results that show a strong link between social media use and psychological problems."
However, health risks, such as anxiety disorders, do not arise exclusively from harmful or disturbing content.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called for an EU-wide age limit, modelled on Australian law. From December 2025, proof of a minimum age of 16 will be required to use social media. In November, MEPs called for a complete ban on social media in the EU for children under 13, while children aged 13 to 16 would only be allowed to use such platforms with parental consent.
What social media bans are European countries planning?
The French government wants to ban the use of social media by children under the age of 15. The lower house of parliament in Paris has already approved the bill, and it is now before the Senate.
In Denmark, at the end of 2025, a majority in parliament voted in favor of protecting children and young people from online abuse and “creating better framework conditions for their digital lives.” Children under the age of 15 should be banned from accessing some social media platforms – but the corresponding law has not yet been passed.
Italy is also discussing a law that would restrict the use of social media, which could, among other things, apply to children under 15 who act as influencers.
Greece, according to sources close to the government, is planning a similar move.
In Portugal, the government this week proposed a law that would require parental consent for those under 16.
This topic is being discussed in both Austria and Great Britain.
How could social media bans be effectively enforced?
One idea being discussed for age verification is a digital identity at the European Union level. Richter of the Bruegel think tank says the digital identity is designed as a tool to verify the age of users without compromising personal data.
A digital identity is currently being discussed at EU level that would allow anonymous age verification, Richter explains: “This would allow people to digitally prove that they have reached a certain age, without having to provide additional personal data such as their exact date of birth, name, address or ID number. This would make it easier to enforce a digital age limit.”
Mark Dami has a different view. He is a computer science professor and spokesperson for ctrl+alt+reclaim, a movement founded by young people and young adults that, by their own admission, advocates for technological justice and digital rights. Dami stresses that it is not yet clear how age-verification apps or digital IDs would work, and how secure private data would be.
"We agree that there is a problem - social media causes psychological problems," says Dami. But he sees the proposals so far as primarily symbolic politics, not a real solution: "Such bans have the opposite effect."
In addition, he warns: "Addiction doesn't stop at 15 or 16."
Only the EU can force internet platforms to change
The European Union has called for a minimum age for social media. It has also warned member states that national laws must not conflict with the European Union's Digital Services Act (DSA). The EU's Digital Services Directive requires high-tech companies to reduce the risks associated with algorithms and their effects on minors.
“The DSA and the European Commission are the only instances that can impose additional obligations on large platforms,” explains Thomas Regnier, a spokesman for the Commission on Technology.
But Brueghel expert Richter argues that member states are frustrated because they do not believe that the EU is capable of effectively enforcing its laws against foreign high-tech companies, especially those from the US. “The DSA requires large internet platforms to change their algorithms and platform design to reduce systemic risks, including those for minors,” Richter notes.
He also explains that, in addition, service providers would have to provide data for research to enable independent risk analyses. "But in practice, this has not happened to a significant extent. That is why more restrictive proposals, including bans on social networks, have received greater support."
The tech industry says it's censorship
Earlier this week, Elon Musk, owner of the X platform, called the Spanish prime minister a "tyrant and traitor to the Spanish people" after he announced plans to ban social media for children.
Musk, as well as Facebook founder and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, have previously tried to present EU regulations as an excuse to restrict freedom of speech on the internet.
Internet activist Dami, however, believes that it is time for EU members to jointly invest in alternatives to existing social media platforms in order to break the non-European dominance of the industry. Currently, digital life without them is almost impossible, reminds Dami, concluding: "We are hostages of large American companies."
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