Brussels unveils plans for EU-wide social media ban for kids under 13
The EU KIDS Act will boost parental oversight of children between the ages of 13 and 15 with mini accounts linked to the parent or guardian's main account that would limit them to age-appropriate social media and video-sharing platforms, the European Commission said in a news release.
Services accessed via mini accounts must have safeguards built-in, including restricted ability to be contacted and contact others and a daily screen time limit of an hour maximum in recognition of "the role of guardians in supporting the autonomous and safe development of their children online," the commission said.
"Today, our children are engaging with the most sophisticated technologies ever created. Technology that was never created with their wellbeing in mind. Our KIDS Act is reversing the burden of proof -- it is for platforms to show they are safe by design. And we put parents back in the driving seat, giving them the tools to help their children navigate a safer online world," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Large online platforms will be required to submit a compliance plan to the commission and to an independent auditor for existing and new services, features or functionality to be evaluated and make modifications, if asked to do so.
The proposed ecosystem will require online services and app stores use tools to confirm age such as the EU age verification app with the 27 member states of the bloc "closely involved" in setting up the new regime to keep kids safe online.
The law bans addictive features and profiling-based recommender feeds "dragging minors into 'rabbit holes' of harmful content,'" infinite scroll, reward tricks and push notifications during sleeping hours and unsolicited contact for all online services that provide social media, video sharing and online video games to under-18s.
AI companions and chatbots must be turned off by default and must not interact with users in ways that develop emotional dependency.
Minors' profile must be also set to private by default with geolocation, camera and microphone off and kid-friendly tools provided for them to block and mute other users, manage their time online as well as the ability to easily control, fine-tune and reset recommender systems.
The commission said a proposal had been forwarded to the European Parliament and Council aimed at kickstarting the process of adopting the bill.
"Considering the clear demand for urgent and comprehensive action at Union level, it is essential that the act is adopted swiftly," said the commission.
