Europe · Thursday, 17 September 2026
EU's draft Kids Act would put the burden of proof on social media platforms
The European Commission unveiled the outline of its Kids Act on 16 September, with the full legislative text due the following day: under-13s would be barred from social media entirely, 13 to 15-year-olds would be limited to parent-supervised 'mini accounts' capped at one hour a day, and platforms would face safety-by-design rules for 15 to 18-year-olds. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the burden of proof would now fall on platforms to show they are safe, rather than on regulators to show they are not. The proposal still needs approval from EU member states and could take years to become law.