EU considering social media 'delay' for children

The European Union should explore limiting children's access to social media, with possible new rules proposed as early as this summer, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said.

She has tasked an expert panel to report back by July on what steps the EU should take to protect minors online, including a potential social media ban.

"Without pre-empting the panel's findings, I believe we must consider a social media delay. Depending on the results, we could come with a legal proposal this summer," Ms von der Leyen said during a summit in Copenhagen on AI and children.

She said the question is not whether young people should have access to social media, but whether social media networks should have access to young people.

She said social media companies build their business models to profit from children's vulnerabilities.