France's Constitutional Council Strikes Down Under-16 Social Media Ban as 85% Still Bypass Australia's Curbs
Updated
Updated · The Hindu · Aug 23
France's Constitutional Council Strikes Down Under-16 Social Media Ban as 85% Still Bypass Australia's Curbs
3 articles · Updated · The Hindu · Aug 23
Summary
France's Constitutional Council has struck down the country's newly enacted social media ban for teenagers, removing a key EU attempt to follow Australia with an under-16 restriction.
Privacy concerns helped sink the measure because strict age-verification tools can infringe teenagers' right to private life, even as lawmakers cite adolescent brain vulnerability to addictive platform design.
Australia's 2025 ban has shown the enforcement problem: a recent study estimated 85% of children under 16 still accessed restricted platforms through fake accounts or borrowed logins.
Behavioral-science critics argue bans are inherently leaky because teens shift to other access routes or unregulated platforms, while restrictions alone do little to build self-regulation or fix harmful home environments.
The report points instead to a mixed approach—platform 'nudges' such as disabling autoplay and infinite scroll by default, plus 'boosts' that teach healthier digital habits.