UK Considers Social Media Age Ban and Stricter Child Online Safety Measures
The United Kingdom is assessing new regulations to strengthen online protections for children, including an Australian-style ban on social media for minors and tighter rules on mobile phone usage in schools.
On Monday, the government announced it would review global evidence on proposed measures to determine whether banning social media for children under a certain age would be effective, and how such a policy could be implemented in practice.
Australia’s Model Draws Interest
Ministers are expected to visit Australia — the first country to introduce a nationwide ban on social media access for children under 16 — to study its approach. Although the UK has not indicated a specific age limit, officials said they are exploring restrictions for “children under a certain age,” alongside enhanced age-verification systems and a reassessment of the current digital age of consent.
Growing Concerns Over Online Harm
The proposals come amid heightened global concern about the mental health and safety of children exposed to social media platforms. Governments and regulators worldwide are grappling with issues ranging from excessive screen time and addictive platform design to harmful content including pornography and AI-generated sexual imagery.
The recent surge in AI-generated content has intensified scrutiny. Public outrage grew earlier this month after reports claimed Elon Musk’s Grok AI chatbot had produced non-consensual sexual images, including depictions of minors.
In response, the UK government has outlined plans to ban AI nudification tools and restrict minors from creating, viewing, or sharing nude images on digital devices.
Limiting Addictive Features
Officials also said they are considering removing or restricting platform features known to encourage compulsive use, such as infinite scrolling and autoplay feeds.
According to government data, the recently enforced Online Safety Act — one of the world’s most stringent online safety regimes — has already increased the rate of age checks for minors from 30% to 47%, while reducing access to pornography websites by one-third.
International Reactions
US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said on Monday that Europe should not retaliate against any such policy changes, signaling that Washington is closely watching the UK’s regulatory shift.
“These laws were never meant to be the end point, and we know parents still have serious concerns,” UK Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said. “That is why I am prepared to take further action.”
