France’s Constitutional Council has overturned a law that would have prohibited children under 15 from using social media, citing disproportionate limitations on freedom of expression and privacy. The ruling does not stop France from seeking stronger online protections for children; however, it requires legislation to differentiate between platforms, respect family contexts, and implement robust age-verification safeguards.
Issued on August 14, the decision disrupts President Emmanuel Macron’s push to enforce the ban before the academic year began. The legislation received parliamentary approval on July 21, followed by a referral to the Constitutional Council by over 60 opposition deputies.
The Council acknowledged the constitutional importance of protecting children’s health, safety, and development but criticized lawmakers for not adequately balancing these objectives with communication freedom and privacy rights.
The law’s broad application was a key issue; it would have enforced the ban across all social media platforms without assessing individual risks to children. This approach failed to account for varying platform designs, audiences, and safety records, nor did it consider children’s age, maturity, or family circumstances.
Parents would have had limited capacity to guide their children or approve access to specific services. A near-15-year-old child would face the same restrictions as a younger user, irrespective of the platform or context.
This reflects a broader challenge in European digital policy, where social media can pose risks like harassment, harmful content, and commercial pressure but also offer educational and social benefits. Proper child protection requires more than a binary choice between open access and total exclusion.
The European debate increasingly focuses on platform operators’ responsibilities. Regulators are examining systems and features contributing to addictive behavior, default privacy settings, and content moderation.
The French law also mandated age verification for all users, potentially requiring adults to prove their age. The Council criticized this for failing to specify the conditions and safeguards of age checks, which could involve identity documents or biometric data and might collect excessive personal data or create new security risks.
A robust system should define collected information, who accesses it, retention duration, and potential uses, while providing alternatives for those without standard ID documents.
These issues are especially crucial for marginalized children, such as young migrants or those in care, seeking confidential information on sensitive topics. Overly intrusive safety measures could inadvertently cause harm.
The ruling does not endorse current platform practices nor prevent a revised proposal. A new law could target services with established risks, involve parents appropriately, recognize children’s evolving capacities, and require platforms to mitigate harmful engagement features.
France must align with the Digital Services Act and the European framework for age assurance, which advocates for anonymous age-verification technologies.
Despite privacy-preserving technologies, policymakers must decide when verification is necessary, which services require it, and remedies for wrongful exclusion, with independent scrutiny for accuracy, discrimination, and data security.
Macron urged a revised proposal, reflecting constitutional and European law, amid continued pressure as families and professionals express concerns over children’s online experiences.
The Council’s message is clear: urgency does not negate precision. France can enforce stricter platform regulations and enhance child protection without compromising privacy or assuming uniformity among young users’ circumstances. Future proposals will be evaluated on their effectiveness in shielding children from harmful content and ensuring companies share responsibility for digital environments.
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