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Macron plans to ban social media for users under 15 in France

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French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Tuesday evening that he intends to implement a ban on social media for children under the age of 15 within France, contingent upon insufficient progress at the European Union level. Speaking in the wake of a tragic incident involving the murder of a teaching assistant at a high school in Nogent, Haute-Marne, Macron emphasized the urgency of the situation, stating, “We cannot wait.”

Urgent measures to protect youth online

Macron’s remarks followed a broader initiative led by Greece, with support from France and Spain, to significantly curtail the time minors can spend online across the EU. However, the French president is advocating for more immediate action. During an interview on France 2, he expressed the need for rapid implementation of protective measures for young people using digital platforms.

In addition to the proposed social media ban, Macron detailed plans for strict age verification processes for websites selling knives, paralleling existing regulations for adult content sites. He stated, “A 15-year-old will no longer be able to buy a knife online. That means we’re going to impose massive financial sanctions and bans.” Earlier, Prime Minister François Bayrou echoed this sentiment, calling for swift action to prohibit the sale of all knives to minors.

Regulating social media platforms

Later in the evening, Macron reiterated his commitment through a post on X, asserting, “I’m banning social media for children under 15. Platforms have the ability to verify age. Let’s do it.” The French government is already taking steps to compel various social media platforms, including X, Reddit, Bluesky, and Mastodon, to implement age verification measures by categorizing them similarly to pornographic websites.

Notably, measures requiring age verification for adult websites were introduced on June 7. Following this implementation, the popular adult site Pornhub ceased operations in France, leading to a significant rise in demand for virtual private network services, which enable users to bypass location-based restrictions.

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