Turkey bans children under 15 from social media platforms

Turkey has passed legislation banning children under the age of 15 from using social media platforms, making it one of the stricter regulatory approaches to youth online access in Europe and the Middle East. The law requires social media companies to implement age verification mechanisms to prevent underage users from creating accounts or accessing content on their services.

Enforcement and penalties

Platforms that fail to comply with age verification requirements face financial penalties from Turkish regulators. The legislation designates the national telecommunications authority as the body responsible for enforcement. Companies will be required to verify user ages during account creation and to remove existing underage accounts.

Debate over effectiveness and rights

The law has drawn mixed reactions. Child protection advocates broadly support restrictions on young children's social media use, citing documented harms including cyberbullying, mental health impacts, and exposure to inappropriate content. Critics, including digital rights organisations, argue that age verification requirements are difficult to implement without collecting invasive personal data, and raise concerns about government surveillance and censorship. Turkey has a history of restricting internet access, and some observers expressed concern that child protection framing could be used to justify broader controls.