“We are holding online platforms accountable that do not protect enough our kids. The new age verification solution and the enforcement of our rules go hand in hand,” said von der Leyen.
Von der Leyen has pushed forward EU initiatives to protect minors from online harms and risks to mental health posed by social media. Many national governments are also working on social media bans for minors and teenagers, with France leading that push.
The EU app has been tested in France, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Spain, Cyprus and Ireland in past months. It is also meant to work together with other, national “digital wallet” solutions: “We need a structured approach for EU accreditation of national solutions,” the EU’s tech chief Henna Virkkunen said Wednesday.
Virkkunen added that people using the app “remain in full control of your data.”
Von der Leyen has convened a panel of experts to draft a recommendation on an EU-wide social media ban by the summer. The panel will hold its second meeting on Thursday. Von der Leyen will attend the meeting, an agenda seen by POLITICO showed.