Greece has decided to ban the use of social networks under the age of 15

Although Mitsotakis chose not to name specific platforms, he stressed that he is deeply troubled by the trend of children comparing themselves to others on social media and taking to heart offensive comments posted about them online. He added that Greece will be among the first countries to take such an initiative, but he is sure that it will not be the last, and that his goal is to push the entire European Union to act in this direction.

If the companies do not meet the requirements, they will suffer heavy fines under the EU Digital Services Act. To help parents in the process, the state will launch a dedicated application that will allow them to control the children’s devices and block access to prohibited applications. This move has broad support among the older population in Greece, with a survey conducted in February showing that the majority of the public supports the restrictions, even though the Prime Minister admitted that the move could anger the country’s children and youth.

Greece joins a global trend of countries that realize that the self-regulation of technology companies has failed. Australia is considered one of the pioneers in the field after approving similar legislation that prohibits the use of social networks by children under the age of 16. The Australian move is considered one of the strictest in the world, and it includes huge fines for companies that do not prevent children from opening accounts.

Indonesia and Austria have also introduced similar restrictions in the past year, realizing that the impact of algorithms on children’s developing brains is devastating. Britain is now seriously considering introducing stricter restrictions on children under the age of 16, with the government in London under heavy public pressure from parents’ organizations and mental health experts who claim that social media has become a wild west that endangers children’s safety.

The statistics indicate that over 85% of the youth spend many hours every day in front of the screens, and many of them report a feeling of loneliness despite the constant connection to the digital world. The experts explain that when a child is exposed to uncontrolled content at a young age, his ability to develop social skills in the real world is significantly impaired.

Although the enforcement of such laws is considered very complex from a technological point of view, the determined countries believe that placing the red line is necessary. In Greece they hope that their model, which combines legislation, fines for companies and a government monitoring application, will be an example for other countries on the continent.