UK Government to Ban Under-16s from 'High-Risk' Social Media Apps
The UK government is set to announce a ban on under-16s accessing 'high-risk' social media platforms, with additional restrictions on safer apps and a prohibition on under-18s using romantic or sexual AI chatbots. The policy follows a public consultation that received over 116,000 responses, with nine in ten parents supporting an under-16 ban. The announcement raises significant questions about age verification, platform classification, and the potential for legal challenges via judicial review.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to outline the plans on Monday, though specific platforms subject to the under-16 ban will be named at a later date. Even platforms deemed 'safer' will face restrictions, including bans on disappearing messages, chats with adult strangers, and livestreaming for under-16s. The government described the response as a 'gamechanger' rather than incremental change, framing it as standing up to large technology companies on behalf of parents. However, critics within the process have raised concerns about the speed of the decision — coming less than two weeks after the consultation closed on 2 June — and warned that the risk of judicial review is high, particularly given the challenge of defining which platforms qualify as 'social media.' Age verification remains a central unresolved issue, with questions about how platforms will confirm users' ages and whether doing so could require collecting more extensive personal data. The UK's approach draws comparisons to Australia, where a broad under-16 ban already covers platforms ranging from TikTok and YouTube to Instagram and Facebook.
What's missing
The article does not specify which platforms will be classified as 'high-risk' versus 'safer,' nor does it detail the enforcement mechanisms or penalties for non-compliant platforms. The timeline for implementation is also absent.
What different sources said
UK to ban under-16s from ‘high risk’ social media apps
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