EU KIDS Act Approved: No Social Media Under 13
European Commission President von der Leyen announced the EU KIDS Act has been approved by the College. It bans social media under 13 and personal accounts under 15; ages 13-15 may use only mini accounts set up and supervised by parents or guardians, limited to one hour a day. For ages 15-18, safety-by-design is obligatory. Platforms must submit child safety plans in advance, and age verification uses EU-certified tools.
Impact and considerations
The Act shifts the burden of proof to platforms, requiring them to submit child safety plans in advance and prove their services are safe, with age verification using zero-knowledge proof tools. This creates significant compliance and product-adjustment pressure for social media, video-sharing and gaming platforms ope…
Key points
- The EU KIDS Act has been approved by the College: no social media under 13, no personal account under 15.
- Ages 13-15 may use only mini accounts set up and supervised by parents or guardians, limited to one hour a day.
- For ages 15-18, safety-by-design is obligatory, with no toxic or addictive features.
- Platforms must submit detailed child safety plans in advance, shifting the burden of proof to them.
- Age verification uses EU-certified tools based on zero-knowledge proof, revealing only whether the user is old enough.
Sources and time
- Primary source
- European Commission
- Other sources
- 0
- First source publication
- 17 Sept 2026, 15:49
- Page published
- 17 Sept 2026, 18:00
- Last updated
- 17 Sept 2026, 15:49
- Original links
- European Commission Press Corner：Statement by the President on the EU KIDS Act (opens in a new tab)Primary source · en · Published 17 Sept 2026, 15:49