Danish government argues in favour of social media ban for children under 15

The Danish government is planning a ban on social networks for children under the age of 15. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced this yesterday in the Folketing, the Danish parliament. However, it is still unclear which platforms the ban will affect and when it will be passed and come into force. Parents should also be able to authorize their children to use social networks from the age of 13. This is the usual minimum age that the platforms require for registration.

Denmark is not alone with such a move. Australia passed a social media ban for children at the end of last year. The law impacts children and young people under the age of 16 and is to be implemented this year. The Scandinavian country now wants to follow this example but is setting the age limit slightly lower.

Child development in internet use

The current minimum age for using social networks on the internet is 13. However, according to the Danish newspaper BT, Frederiksen pointed out in her speech that 94 percent of Danish children in year 7 already had a profile on a social media site before their 13th birthday. At this age, typically 13 or 14, almost all children already own a smartphone, as a Danish study found earlier this year.

“We have unleashed a monster,” Frederiksen told parliament, according to the Guardian. “Never before have so many children and young people suffered from anxiety and depression.” Many children have difficulties with reading and concentration. They were “seeing things on screens that no child or young person should see,” she added. “And as many as 60 percent of 11- to 19-year-old boys do not meet a single friend in person during their free time in the course of a week,” she said, according to Euractiv.

Age control still controversial

Danish Digitalization Minister Caroline Stage blames the online platforms for this. “We have been too naive,” she writes. “We have left children's digital lives to platforms that have never thought about their welfare. We need to get out of digital captivity and create community. Our children and young people have been part of a giant experiment in which algorithms and addictive features have been allowed to control their daily lives.”

However, age limits need to be reviewed, and the call for age control on the internet is hotly contested in the EU Parliament. There has also been a push from Denmark. Danish EU politician Christel Schaldemose proposed creating a standardized, difficult-to-circumvent solution for age checks to improve the protection of minors online. The idea has met with support but also resistance. So far, there is no clear majority in favor of universal, mandatory age verification, but there is also no majority against it.

In Denmark, the social media ban is probably still in the planning phase for this reason. So far, there is no concrete draft law on this age limit. If the bill is delayed until next year, its possible adoption could clash with Denmark's next general election, which must take place by October 2026 at the latest.

(fds)