UAE Joins Australia And UK To Protect Kids From Social Media: Full List Of Countries Taking On Big Tech

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has become the latest country to announce strict rules for kids using social media.. The move comes at a time when governments around the world are putting more pressure on Big Tech companies over concerns about online safety, mental health, privacy and harmful content affecting young users. According to Reuters, the UAE has approved a new rule that sets 15 years as the minimum age for using social media platforms. The country has become the first Arab nation to introduce such a restriction.Under the new rules, children below the age of 15 will not be allowed to create, use or operate personal social media accounts. Reuters reported that the ban means children under 15 "will not be able to post content, comment,

share or join public groups."Teenagers aged 15 and 16 will still be allowed to use social media, but with additional safeguards in place. These include age-appropriate content controls, restrictions on interacting with unknown users, screen-time management tools and parental supervision features.The UAE has also made age verification mandatory for social media companies. Social platforms will be required to use digital identity checks and artificial intelligence-supported technologies to verify users' ages. Reuters noted that "Self-declaration of age will not be accepted as a valid form of verification."The regulations apply to all social media platforms operating in the UAE. Tech companies will also be required to disable accounts created by children under 15 and prevent users from bypassing age-verification systems. In addition, platforms will not be allowed to use children's personal data for targeted advertising or behavioural profiling.Full List Of Countries Taking On Big Tech To Protect Children OnlineSocial media companies have been given up to 12 months to comply with the new requirements, the report said.As concerns over the impact of social media on young users continue to grow, governments around the world are increasingly taking action against Big Tech platforms to protect children online.Well, the UAE is not alone in taking action against social media companies. Australia has passed one of the world's strictest laws that aims to ban children under 16 from using social media platforms.In the UK, regulators have child safety rules that require platforms to protect young users from harmful content. Countries such as Canada, Malaysia, France, Norway, Spain, Germany and several other European nations have also proposed or implemented measures to verify users' ages, limit children's access to certain online features and hold Big Tech companies more accountable for protecting minors online.