European countries are edging closer to broad social media bans for children, even as doubts persist over how to implement them and the risk of a new battle with US tech groups.
With France leading and close to passing a law, Spain, Greece, the Netherlands and Denmark have also said they will act to keep young people off platforms like TikTok, Instagram and X. The UK parliament has had early debates and the government has begun consultations with stakeholders.
But past attempts to regulate online platforms have foundered because of the many ways they can be evaded. Initiatives in France and the UK that restricted minors’ access to porn sites were widely circumvented with virtual private networks that shield locations, while some companies refused to comply.