{
  "id": 16167992,
  "title": "New Greece law bans social media for under-15s",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/23/new-greece-law-bans-social-media-for-under-15s",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-23T09:00:21.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Dawn",
    "slug": "dawn",
    "url": "https://www.dawn.com/news/2039246/new-greece-law-bans-social-media-for-under-15s"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Greece's parliament recently passed a law banning children under 15 from using social media. Greece is joining a growing international trend of countries imposing restrictions on young individuals' use of social media platforms. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis first announced the plan in April, utilizing TikTok to explain the necessity of the restrictive measure. After a vigorous debate that lasted from Thursday to Friday in a parliamentary session, Mitsotakis's conservative New Democracy party utilized its majority to pass the bill, which received no support from other parties, according to the Ana news agency.\n\nThe opposition socialist Pasok party abstained from voting in favor of the bill after seeking an alternative proposal that would have established a ban for children under 13 and implemented parental controls for 13- and 14-year-olds. Other left-wing and nationalist parties chose to vote against the bill. The law is set to go into effect on January 1, 2024, requiring social networks to implement age verification and imposing stringent penalties on companies found non-compliant.\n\nAustralia became the first country last year to introduce such a social media ban for children under 16. Over 20 countries have enacted similar laws, as per an AFP tally. Critics argue that social networks employ addictive algorithms to keep children engaged on their devices, and express concern over potential mental health damage from excessive screen time. However, the bans have faced opposition from free-speech advocates, with skeptics questioning the effectiveness of such restrictions.",
  "summary": "Greece’s parliament passed a law on Friday banning children under 15 from social media, joining a growing number of countries imposing curbs on young people’s use of the apps. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced plans for the ban in April, taking to TikTok — one of the most popular social networks with young people in Greece — to explain the “difficult but necessary” measure. After a…",
  "key_points": [
    "Greece bans social media for children under 15 as of January 1, 2024.",
    "Law passed by New Democracy majority without support from other parties.",
    "20+ countries have enacted similar restrictions on young social media users."
  ],
  "editors_take": "This legislative move signals Greece's alignment with a global trend of prioritizing child mental health over digital access by forcing social media companies to enforce strict age verification.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "DW English (Top Stories)",
        "title": "Greece joins countries putting age-limits on social media, banning access for kids under 15",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/23/greece-joins-countries-putting-age-limits-on-social-media-banning",
        "published": "2026-10-23T09:04:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}