Germany plans to ban children under 13 from using social media
The government also intends to oblige platforms to take children's safety into account from the very beginning.
Germany plans to ban children under 13 from using social media
The German government plans to further strengthen child protection measures on the internet. Among the proposals are banning children under the age of 13 from using social media, introducing restrictions for teenagers, and developing a special artificial intelligence education program for primary school pupils. The cabinet has approved the main provisions of the reform, but the final laws have not yet been adopted.
Germany aims to establish its own restrictions until unified rules are introduced at the European Union level. In this case, special platforms designed for children may be allowed as an exception. Step-by-step restrictions are envisaged for teenagers aged 13 to 18, but they have not yet been clearly defined.
The government also wants to oblige platforms to consider child safety from the outset. In particular, it is proposed to disable algorithm-based recommendations by default and to combat addiction-causing features. Such features include infinite scrolling of feeds and automatic playback of videos.
Another initiative is the "KI-Seepferdchen" program, in which primary school pupils will be taught to recognize artificial intelligence applications, understand their opportunities and risks, and use them consciously.
It is unknown when the restrictions will come into force. According to a Bitkom survey, 79 percent of the German population considers the idea of the "KI-Seepferdchen" program for children to be useful.