Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc and Australia would collaborate on protecting children on social media by implementing bans or age limits during a speech at the United Nations in New York on Tuesday.
She made the remarks during a high-level event on “Protecting Children in the Digital Age” which was also attended by the Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, during the UN General Assembly.
Von der Leyen said she had been “inspired” by the Australian law, referring to the country’s 2024 minimum age law, which age-restricted social media – banning access to social media for Australian children under 16-years-old.
“We in Europe are watching and will be learning from you as you implement your world-first, and world-leading social media ban,” she added.
The speech also took aim at the design of social media apps, with von der Leyen saying these platforms are addictive by design due to manipulative algorithms that are “ultimately geared… to return profits for the tech billionaires in Silicon Valley”.
Von der Leyen also highlighted how France, Spain, Greece, Denmark, and Italy are testing the Commission’s blueprint for embedding age-verification into national apps. The EU announced the framework in July when the Commission presented guidelines to protect minors under the Digital Services Act (DSA). “We would be happy to share these with you,” she added, gesturing towards Australia.
The President’s remarks come hard on the heels of her State of the Union speech which also had a segment focused on minor protection. She reaffirmed her SOTEU announcement – that a panel of experts would advise her on how to regulate social media age limits for minors – during her address on Tuesday.
(nl)