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France approves law banning social media for under-15s from January 2027
The measure requires all users in France to verify their age, with tools approved by the French privacy regulator, starting in January 2027.
France’s parliament has approved a law that bans social media access for children under age 15 beginning in January 2027, making it the first European country to take that step, the BBC reports.
The law will require everyone in France to verify their age to use social media, and it comes as the UK and EU develop their own limits in response to concerns about children’s mental health.
Both the French Senate and National Assembly adopted the ban after Tuesday votes, despite criticism from some on the left. Reuters is cited in the coverage as saying platforms would need to use age verification tools approved by France’s privacy regulator.
The BBC also notes concerns about privacy, whether age checks work reliably, how quickly the rules are being implemented, and the risk that young people may find ways around them. French Digital Minister Anne Le Hénanff defended the speed of implementation on the grounds that age verification tools already exist, while a professor of internet studies at Curtin University said the technical aims may be unlikely to fully deliver.