Austria’s governing coalition on Friday, announced plans to ban social media use for children under 14, adding to the list of countries such as Australia, among others that have such restrictions in place.
“We will decisively protect children and young people in future from the negative effects of social media,” news agency Reuters quoted Vice Chancellor Andreas Babler of the Social Democrats as saying.
Why the ban?
Ministers from the three ruling parties said they have reached an agreement in principle on introducing the ban – which is aimed at protecting children from “addictive algorithms” and harmful content, including sexual abuse. However, they did not specify when the ban would take effect and are still working out how it will be implemented.
“We will no longer stand by and watch while these platforms make our children addicted and often also sick … The risks associated with this use were ignored for long enough, and now it is time to act,” Babler said.
How does Austria plan to roll out the ban?
According to a report by AP, Alexander Pröll, the official in Chancellor Christian Stocker’s office responsible for digitization said that “technically modern methods” of age verification will be used — allowing users to confirm their age while still protecting their privacy.
Although the Austrian government would not list individual platforms the ban would apply to but rather decide based on how addictive their algorithms are and whether they include content such as “sexualised violence,” reported Reuters.
He also said that the draft legislation will be drawn up by the end of June, 2026.
When will it come into effect?
There, however, has been no official mention on when the plan to introduce a minimum age, which will need parliamentary approval, might take effect.
Which other nations have a social media ban in place?
Various other nations are considering or moving towards imposing social media restrictions for children.
— In 2024, Australia became the first country to eject children under 16 from social media with the intention of protecting them from harmful content and excessive screen time.
– France’s lower house of parliament approved a ban for under-15s in January.
– This year in March, Karnataka became the first state in India to announce a ban on social media for children under the age of 16 years, while Andhra Pradesh announced restrictions for those under 13 years.
— A social media ban in Indonesia is due to start taking effect on Saturday, as per Reuters.
