Greece to ban social media for under 15-year-olds

Greece will ban social media for children under 15 from January 1, 2027, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced.. Photo / 123RF

Greece will ban access to social media for children under 15 from January 1, 2027, the country’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said. Greece becomes the latest country to do so as concern grows over the platforms’ impact.

“We have decided to go ahead with a difficult but necessary measure: Ban access to social media for children under 15 years old,” he said in a video posted on TikTok.

“Greece is among the first countries in the world to adopt such a measure,” Mitsotakis said, adding that he would put pressure on the European Union to follow suit.

Mitsotakis said he used social media to make the announcement so he could address teenagers and children directly: “I know that some of you are going to be angry ... Our aim is not to keep you away from technology but to combat addiction to certain applications that harms your innocence and your freedom.”

“Science is clear: When a child is in front of screens for hours, their brain does not rest,” he said.

In a letter to EU chief Ursula von der Leyen, Mitsotakis called for a “unified European framework” to be in place by the end of 2026.

He called for a European “Digital Age of Majority” at 15, with biannual age re-verification by platforms to ensure continuous compliance and prevent circumvention of access controls.

A growing body of research suggests too much time online is taking a toll on teen wellbeing.

Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said children born from 2012 onwards will be barred from platforms that promote “endless scrolling” – Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat.

Messaging and video platforms such as Messenger, WhatsApp, Viber and YouTube are not affected, Marinakis said.

“The list of platforms is dynamic. This means that if others with the same characteristics emerge, it will, of course, be updated accordingly,” Marinakis said.

Platforms will be obliged to verify user age, he said.

“Our goal is not to place the burden of responsibility on children, but to pressure the platforms to adopt more effective policies.”

Australia in December became the first country in the world to require TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat and other top sites to remove accounts held by under-16s, or face heavy fines.

However, three months since the landmark laws came into effect, Australia’s online safety watchdog has found a “substantial proportion of Australian children” were still scrolling banned platforms.

Indonesia began enforcing a social media ban for users under the age of 16 in March, and has already issued summons letters to Google and Meta over their failure to comply with the law.

Austria announced last month it would soon ban social media for children up to the age of 14, with a plan to present a new law “as early as this summer”.

Spain and Denmark have also announced their intention to introduce a digital age of majority for social networks.

- Agence France-Presse