The Government has provided further detail on its proposed restrictions for under-16 social media use, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirming platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, X and YouTube are expected to fall within the scope of the measures.
The latest update outlines how technology companies will be responsible for enforcing age verification requirements, with Ofcom expected to oversee enforcement. Messaging services such as WhatsApp and Signal are expected to remain exempt, while ministers are also considering additional measures including restrictions on livestreaming, contact from strangers and overnight social media curfews for young users.
The proposals follow the government’s consultation on children’s online wellbeing, which received more than 116,000 responses, with around 90 per cent of parents backing a minimum age requirement for social media access.
Elizabeth Anderson, CEO of the Digital Poverty Alliance commented: “Children need access to technology and the internet to succeed in modern education, but that access should not come at the cost of their safety or wellbeing online.
As learning becomes increasingly digital, it is important to distinguish between access to devices for education and the addictive, often harmful nature of social media platforms. Measures to reduce children’s exposure to unsafe online environments are a positive step and reflect the concerns of parents across the UK.
However, restrictions alone are not enough. Our recent media literacy research found that while 63 per cent of parents believe education about online harms is the most effective way to keep children safe online, only 23 per cent said their child had received any form of media literacy education in school. Stronger regulation, safer platform design and greater investment in digital and media literacy education remain essential to ensure young people can navigate the online world safely and responsibly.”
Cybersecurity and digital investigations experts have also warned that alongside tighter regulation, greater parental awareness and digital education will remain critical to ensuring young people are protected online and do not migrate toward less regulated digital spaces.
Heather Barnhart, Senior Digital Forensics Expert and Head of Faculty at SANS at Cellebrite commented:
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“The growing evidence of online harm linked to social media shows just how quickly the threat is escalating. Online platforms are becoming harder to regulate and while it is encouraging to see governments globally taking a serious stand to protect children online, it does increase the risk of driving young people to use it anyway in the shadows and perhaps move toward less regulated platforms, which makes safeguarding and intervention more difficult.
Parents, governments and regulators need to take an active role in guiding children on appropriate use. This gets at the larger issue, which is parents having open conversations about the dangers that lurk online – and having concrete guardrails on who their kids are interacting with and what they’re sharing. With education and healthy engagement, families can help their children navigate the online world responsibly and safely.”
The latest proposals are expected to form part of wider ongoing efforts to strengthen online safety protections for children, as policymakers, educators and technology providers continue to debate how best to balance digital access, wellbeing and online freedom.
