New law bans Greek children under 15 from social media

Greece has passed a law banning children under 15 from using social media. The law will officially take effect on January 1, 2027. This new law is among the first of its kind in the European Union. It covers platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and X. The law requires these platforms to use reliable age-verification methods.

The law was passed after Greece's prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, announced the measure earlier this year. The bill, which Mitsotakis called 'difficult but necessary,' was passed by Greece's parliament. The digital governance and AI minister, Dimitris Papastergiou, said that the challenge is here, as children are sinking into the internet every day. He believes that a responsible government must do what it is obliged to do.

Failure to comply with the act will lead to fines under the EU's Digital Services Act. Parents will also need to download apps backed by the state, called Kids Wallet or Gov.gr. These apps will be paired to their child's device and block access. Papastergiou said that these apps are designed to protect privacy and minimize data collected by using 'age tokens' that can confirm someone's age while minimizing the disclosure of their personal data.

The legislation was opposed by Greece's minority parties, so Mitsotakis used his majority government to pass the bill. The nation previously barred mobile phones in schools in 2024. Opinion polls show that the new social media ban for children is widely supported by Greece's adult population.

Mitsotakis previously said that his government's 'goal is to push the European Union in this direction as well.' The European Commission recently introduced the EU Kids Act to do just that. That law stipulates an outright ban only for children under 13. Australia was the first nation to enact a full social media ban for kids, but the age verification has proved challenging to implement.