France has moved to tighten its regulation of social-media platforms in a bid to protect children under the age of 15, requiring parental consent and age-verification measures for younger users. Under the legislation, platforms must obtain explicit authorisation from a parent or guardian before a person under 15 can open an account. The law also sets a legal “digital majority” at age 15 for social-media use, meaning that minors under that age require extra oversight and platforms must provide clearer information on use, data rights, and risks.
One of the core objectives of the law is to reduce children’s exposure to harmful content, cyber-bullying, addictive design features and age-inappropriate use of algorithms that drive engagement. The French regulator ARCOM has set technical standards for verification and age-assurance, and social-media companies face fines of up to 1 percent of global annual turnover if they fail to comply.
French policymakers say the step responds to mounting evidence that children and teenagers are accessing social-media platforms at younger ages—often bypassing age controls—and that such early use carries risks for mental health, self-image, sleep, and exposure to harmful or exploitative content. For instance, a parliamentary inquiry referred to sites like TikTok as “a slow poison”, citing their immersive algorithms and impact on youth. The Guardian+1
While the regulations are welcomed by many child-protection and digital-safety advocates, they raise practical questions for platforms and parents alike. Platforms must implement robust age-verification systems and parental-consent workflows without unduly compromising privacy or accessibility. Families and educators will need to adapt to increased oversight and develop better digital-literacy practices. On the industry side, companies will need to adjust account-creation flows, data-processing policies and user-trust measures to meet French requirements—which may also influence how they operate elsewhere in Europe.
The broader implications extend beyond France’s borders. As one of the leading EU digital-policy innovators, France’s move could serve as a template for other jurisdictions grappling with youth safety online. It also signals that regulators are increasingly willing to hold global platforms accountable for how they design, moderate and monetise access to minors. Over time, the law may shift company-platform incentives, user-experience norms and regulatory expectations worldwide.
In summary, France’s introduction of stricter social-media rules for minors represents a significant regulatory milestone. It offers a clearer framework for protecting young users, emphasises parental involvement and age-appropriate access, and marks a broader policy shift in how digital environments for children are governed. The effectiveness of the law, however, will depend on implementation by platforms, uptake by families and the regulator’s capacity to enforce the rules in a rapidly evolving online world.