Spain becomes first country in Europe to ban social media for under-16s

Spain announced plans on Tuesday to introduce an Australia-style social media ban for under-16s as part of a broader crackdown on tech giants over systemic failures to protect users from harm.

Pedro Sanchez, the prime minister of Spain, spoke at the World Government Summit in Dubai and decried the misconduct of social media platforms. Sanchez said teens under 16 will be unable to access social media platforms starting next week as part of a series of five government measures targeting the platforms.

“Social media has become a failed state, a place where laws are ignored, and crime is endured, where disinformation is worth more than truth, and half of users suffer hate speech,” Sanchez said. “A failed state in which algorithms distort the public conversation and our data and image are defied and sold.”

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