Greece will ban social media access for children under 15 starting in 2027, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced on Tuesday, while calling for coordinated European Union action on youth online safety.
The measure, reported by Reuters, follows Australia's pioneering ban implemented last year and reflects growing international concern about social media's impact on child mental health and development. Greece becomes the first EU member state to announce such a comprehensive age restriction.
"We have a responsibility to protect our children from the documented harms of social media during their critical developmental years," Mitsotakis said in a televised address. "This is not about restricting freedom. This is about giving childhood back to children."
To understand today's headlines, we must look at yesterday's decisions. The debate over youth social media access has intensified globally following multiple studies linking platform use to increased rates of anxiety, depression, and eating disorders among adolescents. France and Norway have implemented partial restrictions, but Greece's outright ban represents the most comprehensive European approach to date.
The Greek legislation will require social media platforms to implement robust age verification systems and face significant fines for non-compliance. Companies will be required to verify user ages through government-issued identification or biometric verification, though the specific technical requirements are still being finalized.
Mitsotakis used his announcement to call for EU-wide regulation, arguing that national approaches create enforcement challenges and competitive disadvantages. "A child in Athens should have the same protections as a child in Paris or Berlin," he said. "This requires coordinated European action, not a patchwork of national rules."
The proposal has already sparked debate within Greece. Parents' organizations largely welcomed the move, citing concerns about cyberbullying, inappropriate content, and the addictive nature of social media algorithms. However, digital rights advocates warn about privacy implications of age verification systems and question whether blanket bans are more effective than education and parental oversight.
"Age verification at this scale requires collecting sensitive personal data, creating honeypots for hackers and surveillance risks," said Eleni Kypraiou, director of the Greek chapter of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. "We share concerns about children's online safety, but we must ensure the cure isn't worse than the disease."
Technology companies have expressed concerns about implementation. While platforms like Meta and TikTok have developed age verification tools, they argue that truly effective enforcement requires cooperation from parents and schools, not just technical barriers that determined teenagers can circumvent.
"We support age-appropriate experiences online," a spokesperson for Meta said in a statement. "However, effective protection requires a ecosystem approach involving families, educators, and platforms working together. Legislation alone cannot solve this complex challenge."
The Greek announcement comes as the European Commission prepares to release its own proposals for updating the Digital Services Act to address youth online safety. Commission officials have indicated that Mitsotakis's call for coordinated action aligns with their own thinking, though they stopped short of endorsing a specific age threshold.
"Member states are right to focus on protecting children online," said Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner for the Internal Market. "We're examining various approaches and will propose harmonized standards that balance safety, privacy, and fundamental rights."
The 2027 implementation timeline provides time for technical development and public debate before the ban takes effect. Greek officials said they will study Australia's implementation experience and work with EU partners to develop best practices for enforcement.
Educational institutions will play a key role in the transition. The Greek Ministry of Education announced plans to expand digital literacy programs and provide alternative platforms for educational technology that comply with the age restrictions.
Whether other EU nations follow Greece's lead remains uncertain, but the announcement has already energized advocates of stricter youth online protections across the continent. Ireland and Denmark have indicated they are reviewing their own policies in light of the Greek decision.
