EU Urges France to Revise Under-15 Social Media Ban

The European Commission has urged France to revise a proposed law that would ban children under 15 from using social media. According to a report by Le Monde, Brussels believes the bill in its current form would conflict with European Union rules, particularly the Digital Services Act (DSA).

The Commission said on Monday that it supports the French authorities’ objective, but that national measures must not create legal uncertainty or undermine the uniform enforcement of EU rules. Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier said minors must be better protected online and that France is one of the countries making significant progress on the issue.

Brussels’ position does not prevent Paris from introducing a minimum age for social media use, but the proposal must be brought into line with EU law. Under EU procedures, the legislation also cannot be approved before 10 August.

Pressure to restrict children’s access to social media in Europe is growing after Australia became the first country to introduce such a ban. The EU is also considering bloc-wide legislation.

(Le Monde, Luc)