France has become the first European country to ban social media for under-15s after its parliament passed a law requiring everyone in the country to verify their age to access the platforms.
The French Senate and National Assembly both adopted the ban on Tuesday, despite criticism from some on the left. The law will be rolled out in two stages. From September, people under 15 will be blocked from opening new accounts and age verification will be required for all new sign-ups.
By January 2027, the rule will extend to existing accounts as well, meaning every person in France will need to prove they are over 15 to continue using social media.
President Emmanuel Macron, who had pledged to launch the ban to mark the end of his decade in office, has welcomed its passage. His government has maintained that the online tools needed for age verification are effective and safe, even as sceptics have questioned whether the law can actually be enforced.
An international media outlet has reported that once the ban takes effect, platforms will be required to use age-verification tools approved by France’s privacy regulator. Concerns have surfaced over privacy, how well the verification tools will work, the possibility of young people bypassing them and the speed at which the law has been drafted and passed.
French Digital Minister Anne Le Hénanff defended that pace ahead of the vote, telling the agency the law could move quickly “because age-verification tools already exist.”
France is only the second country to bring in such a ban, after Australia, which barred under-16s from social media in December. Enforcement Down Under has proven difficult. Australia’s eSafety Commission said in March that seven out of 10 children under 16 who had social media accounts before the ban still had “some access” to the platforms.
Tama Leaver, professor of internet studies at Curtin University in Western Australia, told the BBC that Australia’s ban has “failed” in its technical goals, though it has proven that such a ban “can be done,” calling it “a bit of an experiment.”
He said other countries could learn from the experience, arguing that “young people need to be part of this conversation” so a ban is “done with them” and not “to them.”
According to Leaver, France’s ban could fare better than Australia’s because it requires every user, not just minors, to verify their age, though this comes with its own privacy risks. He also warned that the ban could push young people toward less-regulated online spaces and reduce both their news consumption and political engagement.
