"Threat to Democracy": Are We Heading Towards a Socially-Driven Era?
Let's discuss the rising concerns about kids' safety online in 2025
Jörg Leichtfried, the State Secretary for State Protection in Austria, is sounding the alarm about the digital dangers young people are facing in 2025. He argues that children and teenagers are being exposed to harmful content, extremist ideologies, and disinformation, and it's high time for society to take action to protect them.
The need for stricter age limits on social media
Leichtfried is advocating for a more stringent approach to regulating social media use among young people. Despite the General Data Protection Regulation's rules regarding the use of data from under-13s, reality doesn't always match. Leichtfried suggests that we need a tightened age limit on social media to safeguard kids, and the debate on this topic is gaining steam across Europe. Countries like Britain and EU neighbors such as France, Spain, and Greece are considering similar measures.
Joining forces against the "lawless space" of the internet
Leichtfried argues that the internet, despite its rules, is frequently a chaotic and unregulated environment, which is why it's often referred to as a "lawless space." To counter this, Leichtfried believes that society also needs to become more resistant to fake news, disinformation, and extremism. Strengthening democracy is a key priority for these actions.
According to a youth survey by Ö3, 87 percent of respondents support the idea of an age limit for social media usage, further fueling the debate.
Controversy and challenges in the digital age
Implementing age verification for social media usage comes with technical, privacy, and enforcement challenges. Despite legislative mandates, effective and privacy-friendly age verification systems are still not widely available. Platforms like Meta and TikTok have started implementing some measures, but the effectiveness remains doubtful.
In the EU, there's ongoing debate and resistance to the best approach, as some member states and the Commission have different views. Regardless, it's clear that stricter measures are being considered to shield kids from the potential risks and dangers of the digital world.
Stay tuned for updates as the EU works to develop more robust frameworks to protect our children from the ever-evolving threats of the internet.
- Jörg Leichtfried, advocate for stronger online safety measures, insists on stricter age limits for social media use to shield kids from harmful content, extremist ideologies, and disinformation.
- Amid calls for tougher regulations, other European countries like Britain, France, Spain, and Greece are considering similar age-limit measures for social media.
- The proposed age verification for social media use faces technical, privacy, and enforcement challenges, yet it remains a priority to safeguard children from the dangers of the digital world.
- As the EU takes steps to strengthen digital regulations, controversies and challenges arise regarding the best approach for protecting children from the risks of crime, extremism, and misinformation on social media, as well as issues related to policy-and-legislation, general-news, and war-and-conflicts in the digital age.
