Istanbul: Turkish lawmakers on Wednesday night passed a bill that restricts access to social media platforms for children under the age of 15, according to state media reports.
The legislation is part of a growing global push to shield young people from harmful online content. Its approval comes just a week after a tragic school shooting in Kahramanmaras, southern Türkiye, where a 14-year-old boy killed nine students and a teacher at a middle school before dying by suicide. Authorities are investigating the attacker’s online activity in an effort to determine his motives.
Under the new law, social media companies will be required to implement age-verification systems, provide enhanced parental control tools, and ensure rapid removal of content deemed harmful. The state-run Anadolu Agency reported that platforms must also take swift action against such material.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to approve the bill within 15 days for it to become law. Following the Kahramanmaras attack, he emphasised the need to address digital risks facing children, stating in a televised address: “We are living in a period where some digital sharing applications are corrupting our children's minds and social media platforms have, to put it bluntly, become cesspools.”
The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) criticised the move, arguing that children should be protected “not with bans but with rights-based policies.”
Once enacted, the law will require major digital platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Facebook and Instagram to block account creation for users under 15 and introduce parental control mechanisms to manage access.
Online gaming companies will also be obliged to appoint representatives in Türkiye to ensure compliance with the new regulations. Enforcement measures may include fines and reductions in internet bandwidth imposed by the country’s communications regulator.
The Turkish government has recently faced criticism for increasing restrictions on online platforms, which have also been used as spaces for political dissent. Last year, internet access was widely restricted during protests supporting Istanbul’s jailed opposition mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu.
Globally, similar measures are being introduced or considered. Australia began restricting social media access for users under 16 in December, leading companies to remove access to around 4.7 million accounts identified as belonging to minors. Indonesia has also started enforcing a regulation banning children under 16 from accessing certain digital platforms due to concerns over pornography, cyberbullying, scams and addiction.
Countries including Spain, France and the United Kingdom are also exploring or implementing restrictions on children’s social media use amid rising concerns over exposure to unregulated and harmful online content.
With PTI inputs