EU to propose age limits for access to digital platforms

The European Commission will present a legislative proposal after the summer break aimed at strengthening the protection of children on social media and introducing age restrictions for access to digital platforms.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made the statement following the presentation of a report by the Special Panel on Children's Online Safety.

According to her, the panel studied the impact of social media algorithms on children, the risk of addiction and threats to mental health.

Von der Leyen said the findings confirmed the need to introduce age restrictions for the use of social media.

"Social media is not a toy. Children should be raised by parents, not by algorithms designed to generate profit," she said.

She noted that European teenagers spend an average of four to six hours a day in front of screens, while nearly 60% of children have faced emotional or psychosocial problems online.

"Childhood is an extremely important and highly sensitive period of brain development. This is precisely when children should spend more time in the real world," von der Leyen said.

She stressed that digital platforms must prove the safety of their services and be held responsible for addictive algorithms, harmful content and unwanted contacts.

According to the European Commission president, one of the tools for protecting children will be an age verification app that will be easy to use and ensure privacy.

"We listened to parents, educators, experts and young people themselves. We studied the experience of our partners, including Australia, as well as EU member states. Now it is time to act at the European level. We will carefully examine the report and its recommendations, and after the summer break we will present the relevant legislative proposal," she said.