The German Family Minister Karin Prien has spoken out in favor of a legal age limit of 13 years for the use of social media. “For children under the age of 13, there should be a legal reservation of permission that only demonstrably allows child-friendly and low-risk offers,” said Prien at the presentation of the report on the overall strategy for child and youth protection on Thursday in Berlin. The minister referred to the suggestions of an expert commission that developed a total of 56 recommendations for action. In addition to increased media education, this includes nationwide reporting points for problematic content.
“It is not the child who has to adapt to the digital world, but the digital world to the child. Excluding children and young people from the digital world is no protection,” emphasized Olaf Köller, co-chair of the commission. The question of an age limit for social media has been discussed for a long time. Because children and young people are confronted with content such as pornography, hate or bullying online. The Ethics Council recently spoke out against a blanket ban on social media for children and young people.
