Greece to block social media for children under 15 starting next year

Greece has passed a law that will block children under 15 from using social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and X starting next year. The law was announced by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis earlier this year and was passed by the parliament. It will go into effect on January 1, 2027, and it is the first of its kind in the European Union.

The new law requires social media platforms to use age-verification methods to ensure that only people 15 and older can access them. The government says this is necessary because children are spending more time on the internet every day. Greece's digital governance and AI minister, Dimitris Papastergiou, said that the government believes it must act responsibly to protect children from the internet.

The law also requires parents to use state-backed apps called Kids Wallet or Gov.gr to block access to social media on their child's device. These apps are designed to protect privacy and minimize the amount of data collected from users.

The legislation was opposed by Greece's minority parties, but Mitsotakis used his majority government to pass the bill. The law is widely supported by Greece's adult population, and opinion polls show that adults think it is a good idea.

The law will be enforced with fines under the EU's Digital Services Act. The government says that failure to comply with the law will result in penalties for social media companies.

Greece previously banned mobile phones in schools in 2024, and now it is banning social media for children under 15. Mitsotakis said that his government's goal is to push the European Union to follow Greece's example. The European Commission has introduced the EU Kids Act, which would also ban social media for children, but only for those under 13.

Australia was the first country to ban social media for children, but it has been difficult to implement age verification there. Greece's law will be the first in the European Union to ban social media for children under 15.

The government says that the law is necessary to protect children from the internet. It is a difficult but necessary measure to ensure that children are not exposed to the dangers of social media.

The law is now official and will go into effect next year. It is the first of its kind in the European Union, and it is widely supported by Greece's adult population.