The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced that it will ban individuals under the age of 15 from creating and using personal accounts on social media platforms, as part of a new regulation aimed at improving children’s online safety. Thus, the UAE becomes the first Arab country to implement such an application. The decision came after age restrictions for children’s use of social media came to the fore recently in different parts of the world.
According to the new rules, children under the age of 15 will not be able to open accounts on social media platforms, use existing accounts or operate personal accounts. In addition, activities such as sharing content, commenting, sharing posts or joining public groups will also be prohibited for users in this age group. The regulation aims to reduce the risks that children may face online.
A different approach will be adopted for users aged 15 and 16. Young people in this age group will be able to continue using social media platforms. Despite this, use will be limited by certain security measures. Age-appropriate content filters, tools that restrict interaction with unknown users, screen time management options and parental monitoring features will become mandatory for these users.
Age verification requirement for social media companies
One of the most striking parts of the regulation relates to age verification systems. Social media companies will need to use digital identity checks and AI-powered technologies to verify users’ age. It will no longer be considered sufficient for the user to simply declare his date of birth. This approach aims to prevent children from giving false information to exceed age limits.
In addition, social media platforms will also need to disable accounts previously created by users under the age of 15. Companies are also asked to develop measures to prevent users from bypassing age verification systems. However, in the current statements, details on how this will be implemented technically are not shared.
The new regulation is not limited to account access only. Platforms will also be prohibited from using children’s personal data for targeted advertising or evaluating them in behavioral profiling activities. In recent years, it seems that similar steps have been taken to protect children’s online data in many countries. Data protection obligations for technology companies are gradually increasing in regions such as the European Union and the United Kingdom.
The UAE government has given social media companies a year to comply with the new rules. During this period, platforms are expected to establish age verification infrastructures, review existing accounts, and make parental control tools compliant with regulation. While similar regulations are being discussed in different countries of the world, the decision taken by the UAE may further accelerate global discussions on age limits for social media use. The implementation process of the regulation and how technology companies will respond to it will be understood in the coming period.