Overview
- Denmark agreed to introduce a national minimum age of 15 for access to certain social networks, with parents able to permit use from 13 after review, though affected platforms, enforcement and timing remain unspecified.
- Australia will extend its existing regime to cover Reddit and livestreaming site Kick from 10 December, with noncompliant platforms facing fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars.
- Germany has no statutory minimum age for social media use, and parental consent for under‑16s is rarely verified, with registration birth dates easily falsified.
- Federal Drugs Commissioner Hendrik Streeck proposes staged, FSK‑style age ratings for apps that restrict features and limit engagement‑driven algorithms for younger users.
- Cited research reports average use by children and adolescents of about 150 minutes per weekday and 224 minutes on weekends, and surveys indicate roughly half of youths want to reduce social‑media time but need support.