The Philippines to ban social media for kids!
Bangkok, Aug 11 (EFE).-
The Philippines has begun debating restrictions on minors’ access to social media, with the government and legislators arguing that these platforms expose children and adolescents to violent content, harassment, and online radicalization.
The discussion gained momentum after the June 22 shooting at a school in Tacloban, about 580 km southeast of Manila, where three students were killed and others wounded. The incident led to several initiatives being introduced in Congress to establish a minimum age and require platforms to verify the age of their users.
One of these initiatives, presented in the House of Representatives on June 29, proposes prohibiting social media accounts for children under 15. Another initiative, registered the following day, proposes preventing independent access for children under 13 and establishing a tiered protection system for adolescents, based on age and potential risk.
The Senate is also considering bills regarding a minimum age for using social media, including the so-called Children’s Social Media Safety Act, introduced in April and still under review.
The presidency recently stated that the proposals should be carefully considered because social media has both positive and negative effects on young people and because any regulation must balance child protection with other rights.
The Philippine debate comes as other countries have already tightened their rules on minors’ access to social media.
Australia was one of the pioneers, establishing a minimum age of 16 for maintaining accounts on certain platforms, effective December 2025.
The legislation requires companies to take reasonable measures to prevent minors under that age from having accounts and includes fines of up to AU$49.5 million ($32 million).
At the end of March, Indonesia became the first country in Southeast Asia to restrict access for minors under 16 to social media platforms considered high-risk. The measure initially affected platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X, Bigo Live and Roblox, and could reach some 70 million minors.
Since June, Malaysia has also implemented an age verification system to prevent those under 16 from opening accounts on major social media networks, as part of its strategy to strengthen online child safety. EFE
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