{"id":465329,"date":"2026-09-17T16:55:52","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T14:55:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/2026\/09\/17\/minori-online-arriva-la-legge-ue-sui-bambini-per-proteggerli-dai-rischi-digitali\/"},"modified":"2026-09-17T17:48:37","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T15:48:37","slug":"children-online-the-eu-childrens-act-is-here-to-protect-them-from-digital-risks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/2026\/09\/17\/children-online-the-eu-childrens-act-is-here-to-protect-them-from-digital-risks\/","title":{"rendered":"Children online: the EU Children\u2019s Act is here to protect them from digital risks"},"content":{"rendered":"

From our correspondent in Strasbourg \u2013 <\/em>She had promised it, and it has arrived. The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen<\/strong>, today (17 September) presented the EU Kids Act<\/a> to protect children from online risks and regulate their access to the internet. Among other measures, the proposal bans children under the age of 13 from using social media and sets the minimum age for opening an account at 15. In its official communications, the Commission emphasises the “gradual<\/a>” approach of the text: certain functions and services must only be permitted from a certain age. The proposal also includes numerous obligations<\/a> for platforms. Should the law come into force, these platforms will have to demonstrate that their services are age-appropriate and safe from the moment they are designed. \u201cToday, our children are interacting with the most sophisticated technologies ever created \u2013 technologies that were not designed with their wellbeing in mind<\/strong>,\u201d stated<\/a> von der Leyen at a press conference on the sidelines of the European Parliament\u2019s plenary session in Strasbourg (France). <\/span><\/p>\n

The proposal is based on the report \u201cProtecting and Empowering Children Online<\/a>\u201d, published this summer and drawn up <\/span>by the Special Panel<\/a><\/span> on children\u2019s online safety<\/a>, a group of experts set up by the European Commission with the aim of protecting children in the digital world, examining age limits for social media and drawing up new rules for online platforms. It is structured around four pillars. The first is the \u201cdifferentiated access to social media<\/strong>\u201d. In addition to the ban on opening a social media account independently before the age of 15, the proposal stipulates that, for young people aged between 13 and 15, \u201cparental control\u201d<\/strong> must be in place. More specifically, guardians will be able to create \u201cmini-accounts\u201d for the minors in their care, who, in turn, will only be able to access them via the guardian\u2019s own account. During this period, platforms are required to provide age-appropriate content and other protective measures, such as \u201climiting social interactions and screen time (to a maximum of one hour per day).\u201d An EU official explained that the Berlaymont building has focused primarily on this stage of adolescence because, according to researchers, it is particularly sensitive. <\/strong>Among the reasons cited are incidents of bullying and the resulting impacts on mental health. Experts have also suggested “adopting a gradual approach rather than a total ban,” the official clarified, as this is what “children need in modern society.” For children aged between 3 and 13, only \u201cvideo-sharing services specifically designed for young children via accounts managed by a guardian\u201d will be permitted. In this regard, the official stated that this strict distinction \u201cwill not apply to artificial intelligence software,\u201d as researchers recognise its important role in certain sectors, such as education. He also clarified that the Commission cannot prevent artificial intelligence platforms from aligning their services with these requirements. However, if ChatGPT \u201callows a child to use its software, the software must comply with EU rules,\u201d he emphasised. <\/span><\/p>\n

The second pillar is \u201csafety by design<\/strong>\u201d. This comprises a set of requirements for all online services offering \u201csocial media, video-sharing platforms, online video games, and AI companions\u201d<\/strong> – virtual companions based on artificial intelligence, which are information programmes or chat applications designed to simulate human relationships \u2013 and chatbots<\/strong> \u2013 a computer programme designed to simulate a conversation with a human being, via text or voice \u2013 \u201cto users under the age of 18.\u201d<\/strong> \u201cThe EU Kids Act now introduces a very clear list of permitted and prohibited behaviours for digital services, applicable to all users under the age of 18,\u201d highlighted<\/a> the Executive Vice-President for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, Henna Virkkunen<\/strong>, at a press conference alongside von der Leyen. For example, \u201cstrangers cannot send messages to minors, who cannot be targeted by personalised advertising or algorithms based on their past activities,\u201d she explained. Specifically, platforms will have to ban \u201caddictive features and recommendation feeds based on profiling that drag minors into \u2018tunnels\u2019 of harmful content.\u201d \u201cInfinite, uninterrupted scrolling and reward mechanisms\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 digital strategies that stimulate the release of dopamine in the brain to encourage users to repeat an action \u2013 \u201cpush notifications\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 a short message that an app or website sends directly to the screen of a smartphone, tablet or computer, without the user having to open the app or refresh the page \u2013 during \u201cnight-time hours\u201d, and \u201cunsolicited contact from strangers<\/strong>\u201d will also be banned<\/span>. Furthermore, for those under 18, AI-based companions and chatbots \u201cmust be disabled by default and must not simulate interpersonal relationships in ways that create emotional dependence.\u201d In other words, \u201cthe EU Kids Act stipulates that they may no longer behave like human friends in ways that make children emotionally dependent on them,\u201d the Vice-President explained. <\/span><\/p>\n

In third place is “age verification that respects privacy”.<\/strong> Among the solutions proposed by the European Commission is, for example, the EU age verification app, which does not store identity documents or biometric data. In this context, the Commission has promised that \u201cMember States will be closely involved in the creation of this ecosystem,<\/strong>\u201d which is not yet in place. Age verification will have to be carried out when an account is created, while for existing accounts, providers will have to estimate the user\u2019s age based on \u201creasonable indicators\u201d, such as \u201cthe date an account was created or credit card details.\u201d On this issue, an EU official has hinted at the possibility of coordinating with Member States to source the necessary data \u201cfrom school registers,\u201d although the matter is still being finalised. Meanwhile, according to an EU official, 20 countries have already begun tackling the issue and \u201care well on their way, while we are stepping up cooperation with a further seven to speed up the process.<\/strong>\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

The final pillar is the \u201ceffective enforcement of the rules\u201d.<\/strong> Von der Leyen made it clear that \u201can age limit does not exempt tech companies from responsibility for the content on their platforms.\u201d So far, \u201cplatforms have been far too lax when it comes to our children\u2019s mental health,\u201d and today \u201cwe are reversing the burden of proof. It is now up to them to prove to us that they are safe,\u201d she asserted.  With this shift in the burden of proof, the Commission intends to make \u201cvery large online platform providers responsible for demonstrating that their services are \u2018safe by design\u2019.\u201d These providers \u201cwill be required to submit a compliance plan to the Commission and to an independent auditor tasked with thoroughly assessing the new service, feature, or functionality. Should the auditor\u2019s report reveal any shortcomings, the Commission reserves the right to require the provider to propose corrective measures.\u201d According to an EU official, consideration should be given to an EU <\/strong>compliance plan, perhaps allowing \u201cchildren to participate in independent audits with psychiatrists and doctors who have access to the companies\u2019 data.\u201d  <\/b>For the time being, the proposal merely introduces fast-track enforcement procedures against providers in the event of non-compliance with the EU KIDS Act, stipulating that the Commission must conclude its investigations within 90 days. Thus, \u201crather than leaving it to the authorities to prove harm after the event, the largest platforms will have to submit detailed plans for child safety in advance,\u201d urged the head of the Berlaymont building. <\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, von der Leyen reiterated that \u201cit is not only children who are at risk\u201d, but that \u201caddictive design dynamics\u201d are harmful to \u201ceveryone, children and adults alike.\u201d That is why, she said, \u201cwe need a broader regulatory framework than the Digital Fairness Act\u201d \u2013 a future European Union law designed to update and strengthen consumer protection in the digital world \u2013 announcing that new measures will be proposed in the autumn. Today\u2019s legislative proposal has been forwarded to the European Parliament and the Council, thereby setting in motion the legislative process for its examination and adoption<\/strong>. According to data from the Eurobarometer<\/a> presented by the President this morning, \u201c92 per cent of Europeans say the EU should strengthen the protection of children and young people online.\u201d Around \u201c70 per cent are concerned about cyberbullying, harassment, and grooming.\u201d The figures also show that \u201cin Europe, young people spend on average between four and six hours a day in front of screens\u201d and \u201cfor those who started using social media before the age of 10, the figure is even higher: they spend around seven\u2013eight hours online.”<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The proposal was presented on the sidelines of the European Parliament\u2019s plenary session by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Vice-President Henna Virkkunen. Among the various measures, the proposal bans children under the age of 13 from using social media<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7908,"featured_media":465284,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"format":"standard","override":[{"template":"1","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"right-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"top","share_float_style":"share-monocrhome","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"0","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","show_comment_section":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"0","show_post_related":"1","show_inline_post_related":"0"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0","subtitle":""},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[25710],"tags":[25871,25755,34267,35750,27368,34798,35217,35751,32400,26708,27863,26941,27742],"class_list":["post-465329","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-net-tech-en","tag-news-parliament-en","tag-henna-virkunnen","tag-legge-sui-bambini-ue","tag-meta-en","tag-minori-online","tag-palazzo-berlaymont","tag-piattaforma-digitale","tag-plenaria-di-strasburgo-en","tag-session-plenary-en","tag-social-media-en","tag-tiktok-en","tag-ursula-von-del-leyen-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465329","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7908"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=465329"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465329\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":465330,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465329\/revisions\/465330"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/465284"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=465329"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=465329"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=465329"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}