Turkish parliament approves bill restricting minors’ access to social media
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey’s parliament on Wednesday passed a bill restricting minors’ access to social media platforms, following public outrage over two recent school shootings involving minors.
The legislation prohibits platforms from offering services to children under the age of 15 and requires companies to implement safeguards, including age verification systems.
“The platforms will be prohibited from offering services to children under the age of 15 and will be obligated to take necessary measures, including age verification, to prevent such services. Social network providers will also take necessary measures to provide separate services specifically for children over 15. These measures will be published on the social network provider's website,” the legislature said in a statement following the vote.
Lawmakers said the measures are intended to strengthen family structures and protect children from risks associated with digital platforms.
Under the new law, social media companies must also provide accessible parental control tools, including settings for account management, payments, and screen time.
Turkey is also moving toward regulations that would require users to verify their identities through the e-Government (e-Devlet) system before accessing major platforms, though details of implementation remain unclear.
The move follows two school shootings earlier this month in Sanliurfa (Riha) and Kahramanmaras provinces that left several people dead and tens injured.
Authorities have since intensified monitoring of online platforms.
“One hundred and eleven channels operating on the Telegram platform, belonging to the group named ‘C31K’, which was assessed to have shared content related to these incidents, have been shut down,” Turkish police said in a statement on Friday.
"We aim to focus more heavily on cyber patrol activities and strengthen the capacity of our cyber units. We will further reinforce our visible and invisible presence in the dark corridors of the internet by also utilizing artificial intelligence," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday in a post on X, regarding the school shootings.
The legislation prohibits platforms from offering services to children under the age of 15 and requires companies to implement safeguards, including age verification systems.
“The platforms will be prohibited from offering services to children under the age of 15 and will be obligated to take necessary measures, including age verification, to prevent such services. Social network providers will also take necessary measures to provide separate services specifically for children over 15. These measures will be published on the social network provider's website,” the legislature said in a statement following the vote.
Lawmakers said the measures are intended to strengthen family structures and protect children from risks associated with digital platforms.
Under the new law, social media companies must also provide accessible parental control tools, including settings for account management, payments, and screen time.
Turkey is also moving toward regulations that would require users to verify their identities through the e-Government (e-Devlet) system before accessing major platforms, though details of implementation remain unclear.
The move follows two school shootings earlier this month in Sanliurfa (Riha) and Kahramanmaras provinces that left several people dead and tens injured.
Authorities have since intensified monitoring of online platforms.
“One hundred and eleven channels operating on the Telegram platform, belonging to the group named ‘C31K’, which was assessed to have shared content related to these incidents, have been shut down,” Turkish police said in a statement on Friday.
"We aim to focus more heavily on cyber patrol activities and strengthen the capacity of our cyber units. We will further reinforce our visible and invisible presence in the dark corridors of the internet by also utilizing artificial intelligence," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday in a post on X, regarding the school shootings.