Portugal followed France and Australia by seeking to ban social media for children in a proposal submitted by ruling party lawmakers to parliament on Monday.
Pressure has been rising in the European Union since Australia in December enforced a social media ban for under-16s.
France, which has just passed a bill banning social media for under-16s, had spearheaded a push for similar EU action alongside member states like Denmark, Greece and Spain.
“The digital age of majority for autonomous access to the platforms, services, games, and applications covered by this law is set at 16,” said the proposal submitted by Portuguese lawmakers.
The proposed law says adolescents aged 13 to 16 may access social networks only with parental consent, and that these platforms must implement an age verification and parental authorisation system compatible with the software used by the Portuguese administration.
“Specialised literature and recent scientific data have shown that early use of these resources … can compromise the normal social and cognitive development of children, proving increasingly addictive and harmful,” said an introductory text to the proposal.
Add Comment