Overview

• EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the European Parliament she will set up an expert group before year-end to recommend a path for age limits on social media.
• The Commission is developing a privacy-focused age-verification app for youth protection, with plans to integrate the technology into the EU digital ID in the longer term.
• Germany’s ifo Bildungsbarometer finds 85% of adults support a minimum age of 16 for social-media accounts, while 47% of 14–17-year-olds are in favor and 42% oppose.
• The survey reports majorities backing phone restrictions at schools and strong demand for AI education, with 66% of teenagers wanting AI taught and frequent weekly use reported.
• Despite heavy use—78% of teens and 58% of adults spend over an hour on social media on weekdays—large shares in both groups believe it harms young people’s mental and physical health.