{"id":934706,"date":"2026-09-17T07:15:58","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T12:15:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/17\/tech-companies-under-fire-as-europe-proposes-social-media-ban-for-under-15s\/"},"modified":"2026-09-17T07:15:58","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T12:15:58","slug":"tech-companies-under-fire-as-europe-proposes-social-media-ban-for-under-15s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/17\/tech-companies-under-fire-as-europe-proposes-social-media-ban-for-under-15s\/","title":{"rendered":"Tech companies under fire as Europe proposes social media ban for under-15s"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero Images\/EU-flag-european-union-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" data-credit=\"Sergii Figurnyi - stock.adobe.co\"  width=\"520\" height=\"173\" alt><\/p>\n<p>Sergii Figurnyi &#8211; stock.adobe.co<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"content-header\">\n<h2>European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says technology platforms will have to prove they are safe before children can access them<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"content-center\">\n<ul>\n<li><i data-icon=\"1\"><\/i><\/li>\n<li><i data-icon=\"2\"><\/i><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"contributors-block\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Bill-Goodwin-CW-contributor-2022-140x180px.jpg\" alt=\"Bill Goodwin\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.techtarget.com\/contributor\/Bill-Goodwin\">Bill Goodwin,<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Investigations Editor<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\n\tPublished: <span>16 Sep 2026 17:00<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<section id=\"content-body\">\n<p>Children under 15 in Europe will be prohibited from having unsupervised social media accounts, along with new demands for technology companies to prove their platforms are safe.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/366643585\/MEPs-urge-European-Commission-to-take-action-over-Europol-shadow-IT\">European Commission<\/a> president Ursula von der Leyen told a State of the Union address at the European Parliament that Europe intended to \u201creverse the burden of proof\u201d for the safety of children onto technology companies. \u201cPlatforms will have to prove to us that they are safe,\u201d she said. \u201cBecause it is not about our minors accessing social media. It is about when and how do we allow social media to access minors.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The EU Kids Act, to be published tomorrow, will ban children under 13 from social media entirely, and children under 15 will be limited to accounts controlled by their parents, with access restricted to one hour a day.<\/p>\n<p>Technology companies will be required to provide services that are \u201csafe by design\u201d for children between 15 and 18.<\/p>\n<p>Von der Leyen said she disagreed with the suggestion it was impossible to roll back the \u201coverwhelming\u201d power of big tech companies. \u201cEurope has the power to act,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is we who decide our rules, not big tech. We do not have to accept addictive features. We do not have to accept children being drawn into ever more extreme content. We do not have to accept that girls have their photos used for AI-generated sexualised images.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>According to a draft of the proposed regulation seen by Computer Weekly, the proposals extend beyond social media companies. Video-sharing services, online games, chatbots and app stores will also be required to follow \u201csafety by design\u201d requirements, including verifying the age of users.<\/p>\n<p>The draft has raised concerns among some critics that it would lead to the widespread use of \u201cidentity checkpoints\u201d on internet services to verify people\u2019s ages, changing the \u201copen nature\u201d of online services.<\/p>\n<section data-menu-title=\"Children deprived of childhood\">\n<h2><i data-icon=\"1\"><\/i>Children deprived of childhood<\/h2>\n<p>Von der Leyen said it was necessary to take steps as children were spending four to six hours a day on their screens and being pulled in by algorithms designed to keep them scrolling. That was leading to loss of sleep, anxiety and even self-harm.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat we are witnessing is a great capture of our children,\u201d she said. \u201cA capture of their attention, their focus, their minds. This is depriving children of their childhood.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The EU\u2019s move will introduce a single approach across EU member states to regulating social media and other online services accessed by children, in the wake of proposals by Italy, France, Norway, Greece, Austria, Poland and Belgium to introduce their own social media bans.<\/p>\n<p>It follows Australia, the first country to ban <a href=\"https:\/\/www.legislation.gov.au\/C2024A00127\/asmade\/text\">social media for young people<\/a>\u00a0in December 2025, and the UK\u2019s announcement of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/366644294\/Big-tech-must-introduce-age-checks-to-support-UKs-under-16s-social-media-ban\">social media ban for under-16s<\/a> in June 2026, which requires tech companies to introduce age verification.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<section data-menu-title=\"Identity checkpoints challenge open internet\">\n<h2><i data-icon=\"1\"><\/i>Identity checkpoints challenge open internet<\/h2>\n<p>James Baker, a manager at campaign organisation Open Rights Group, told Computer Weekly that drafts of the EU Kids Act extended online ID checks across social media, to app stores, games and other services.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur concern is that this changes the fundamental open nature of the internet and makes it a permission-based system where you are required to pass through an identity checkpoint to access information,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Baker said the proposals could also adversely impact small service providers and community-run projects attempting to provide alternatives to Big Tech. \u201cImposing the same complex compliance requirements on those services risks pushing them out,\u201d said Baker.<\/p>\n<p>Isabelle Roccia, managing director for Europe at the International Association of Privacy Professionals, said the European Commission\u2019s proposals raised complex questions over what level of risk was acceptable in online services. j<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe EU Kids Act will raise very real governance questions for operators in scope, [including] how to cater to age categories when designing and delivering services,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Other challenges included \u201chow to navigate the complex interplay of existing laws and guardrails with this extra layer of protection; and how to untangle the chain of responsibility, accountability and duty-of-care in an online environment where these concepts are still fairly new\u201d, she said.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/section>\n<section id=\"DigDeeperSplash\">\n<h4>\n\t\t\t<i data-icon=\"m\"><\/i>Read more on IT risk management<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/366649187\/Government-to-force-tech-companies-to-verify-age-of-users-to-protect-children\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero Images\/smartphone-mobile-apps-data-privacy-2-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/smartphone-mobile-apps-data-privacy-2-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/smartphone-mobile-apps-data-privacy-2-adobe.jpeg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Government to force tech companies to verify age of users to protect children<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Bill-Goodwin-CW-contributor-2022-140x180px.jpg\" alt=\"BillGoodwin\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Bill\u00a0Goodwin<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/366645433\/Platforms-must-shoulder-burden-of-proof-for-social-media-design\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/HeroImages\/child-kid-teen-phone-neppen1-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/HeroImages\/child-kid-teen-phone-neppen1-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/HeroImages\/child-kid-teen-phone-neppen1-adobe.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Platforms must shoulder burden of proof for social media design<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Larissa-Steel-CW-contributor-140x180px.jpg\" alt=\"Larissa Steel\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Larissa \u00a0Steel<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.techtarget.com\/it-strategy\/news\/366644957\/Weekly-news-roundup-SpaceX-acquires-Cursor-Anthropic-met-with-US-government-social-media-bans\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/onlineimages\/maze_g467037520_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/onlineimages\/maze_g467037520_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/onlineimages\/maze_g467037520.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Weekly news roundup: SpaceX acquires Cursor; Anthropic met with U.S. government; social media bans<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/onlineimages\/heaton_rosa.jpg\" alt=\"RosaHeaton\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Rosa\u00a0Heaton<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/blog\/Computer-Weekly-Editors-Blog\/Big-Tech-has-only-itself-to-blame-for-the-UK-governments-social-media-ban\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/digdeeper\/4.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/digdeeper\/4_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/visuals\/digdeeper\/4.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Big Tech has only itself to blame for the UK government&#8217;s social media ban<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Bryan-Glick-profile-pic-2022-140x180px.jpg\" alt=\"BryanGlick\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Bryan\u00a0Glick<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/366650306\/Tech-companies-under-fire-as-Europe-proposes-social-media-ban-for-under-15s\" class=\"button purchase\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Read More<\/a><br \/>\n Margarete Kucera<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sergii Figurnyi &#8211; stock.adobe.co European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says technology platforms will have to prove they are safe before children can access them By Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor Published: 16 Sep 2026 17:00 Children under 15 in Europe will be prohibited from having unsupervised social media accounts, along with new demands for<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":934707,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[106,3098,46],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-934706","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-companies","category-europe","category-technology"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934706","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=934706"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934706\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/934707"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=934706"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=934706"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=934706"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}