Map shows how old you must be to have social media across the globe

The Australian government has announced a ‘world-leading’ authorities to prohibition children nether 16 from utilizing social media.

The determination is portion of Australia’s efforts to curb the carnal and mental health issues brought astir by children’s societal media use.

They cited the impact harmful assemblage representation depictions tin person connected girls and the detrimental impact misogynistic contented has connected young boys arsenic 2 of their reasons for the change.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that determination would beryllium nary exemptions to the laws, adjacent if children are fixed parental consent, and that the projected changes would travel into play a twelvemonth aft the authorities passes.

The ban, though, would not use to those young radical already connected societal media.

Mr Albanese said: ‘This 1 is for the mums and dads. They, similar me, are disquieted sick astir the information of our kids online. I privation Australian families to cognize that the authorities has your back.

‘Social media is doing harm to our kids and I’m calling clip connected it.

‘If you’re a 14-year-old kid getting this (social media content) stuff, astatine a clip wherever you’re going done life’s changes and maturing, it tin beryllium a truly hard clip and what we’re doing is listening and past acting.

‘The onus would beryllium connected societal media platforms to show they are taking tenable steps to forestall access. The onus won’t beryllium connected parents oregon young people.’

The projected prohibition received backlash from the Digital Industry Group, a assemblage which represents sites including TikTok and X, who said the measurement could really punctual kids to research darker parts of the internet.

They argued: ‘Keeping young radical harmless online is simply a apical priority, but the projected prohibition for teenagers to entree integer platforms is simply a 20th period effect to 21st period challenges.

‘Rather than blocking entree done bans, we request to instrumentality a balanced attack to make age-appropriate spaces, physique integer literacy and support radical from harm online.’

Earlier this year, Spain introduced caller authorities to support children from the dangers of societal media.

Their caller laws ruled that minors nether the property of 16 volition not beryllium allowed to entree oregon registry connected societal networks – an summation from 14.

Spanish Justice Minister, Feliz Bolaños said: ‘We privation to springiness families the bid if caput that erstwhile their children are successful a integer environment, they tin beryllium definite that the authorities of Spain cares for them.’

In Ireland, children indispensable besides beryllium 16 to motion up and registry for societal media.

Most different countries successful the satellite let children to make Instagram and specified different accounts astatine the property of 13, usually with parental consent. Those see England, Wales, New Zealand, Italy, France and the Netherlands.

The United States has for decades required tech companies to question parental consent to entree information of children nether 13, which is wherefore societal media usage is banned for those nether that property successful astir countries.

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