Turkey plans to ban social media for children under 15
Kyiv • UNN
The Turkish parliament has passed a law restricting teenagers' access to social media. Providers will implement parental controls and age verification.
The Turkish Parliament has passed a law that introduces restrictions on social media. If the law is signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, social media providers will not be able to offer services to children under 15 years of age starting from October this year. This is reported by Hürriyet, according to UNN.
Details
The bill introducing restrictions on social media was passed last night at a plenary session of parliament. According to the new legislation, starting from October, social media providers will not be able to offer services to individuals under 15 years of age. Special measures will be introduced for the 15-18 age group.
It is reported that the responsibility for age verification lies with the social media company.
The social media company will open a "control panel" for at least one parent of each child. Through this panel, "settings, purchases, rentals, and paid membership operations" of the child's account will be carried out with adult consent. Content and advertising that may harm children will be blocked in advance. The social media provider must immediately, no later than one hour, comply with decisions to remove content and/or block access made in emergency cases. Games will be classified by age categories. A social media provider that violates these rules will be fined a percentage of its turnover.
The law is expected to come into force in the coming days if approved by President Erdoğan. In this case, the age restriction will take effect from the end of October.
Recall
Greece will ban access to social media for children under 15 from January 1, 2027, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Wednesday. He cited rising anxiety, sleep problems, and the addictive design of online platforms.