Turkey Passes New Law to Restrict Social Media Access for Children Under 15

Turkey has passed the new bill which is aimed to restricting the social media access for children under 15. This bill notes the significant move towards to strengthen the online safety. The legislation requires the platforms to implement the strict age-verification systems and parental controls. This move comes amid the rising global concerns over the impact of the digital content on young ones.

Key Features of the New Social Media Law

The new proposed law introduces the several mandatory measures for digital platforms.

Major Provisions

• The age verification systems to prevent the under-15 users from creating accounts.
• Also the main parental control tools to monitor and to manage the children’s online activity,
• The quick removal of the harmful or the inappropriate content.
• Mandatory compliance requirement for the major platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Facebook and Instagram

Additionally the online gaming companies must have to appoint local representatives to ensure the compliance with the regulations.

Reason Behind the Move

The bill comes shortly after the tragic school incident in Kahramanmaras in Turkey which have raised the concerns about the influence of online content on young minds.

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan emphasized this is need to address the risks posed by social media.

And he stated that the digital platforms can negatively impact the children’s mental well-being and safety.

The government also argues that stricter regulations are necessary to protect the children from,

• Cyberbullying
• Harmful or violent content
• Online addiction
• Privacy risks

Examples from Other Countries

Recently the several countries have implemented the social media regulation in the country and many other countries are also thinking about to implementing it.

• Australia have introduced strict restrictions and leading to closure of millions of accounts.
• Indonesia have recently banned the access for children under 16 to certain digital platforms.
• Spain, France, UK and some European countries are also considering or implementing similar measures.

Impact on Tech Companies and Digital Platforms

If the bill get approved the law will require the major tech companies to,

• Redesign their systems for age verification.
• Invest in the the content moderation tools.
• Also to ensure the compliance with local regulations.