Social media is very popular among children and young people, but it also poses dangers. The German Ethics Council has now published recommendations for protecting young people online. The experts reject a blanket ban on social media for young people. Instead, they present a differentiated protection concept that holds platform operators, parents and politicians accountable.
TikTok, Instagram and the like are now a natural part of everyday life for young people. However, not all content is suitable for children and young people, and studies suggest that excessive social media use can be linked to serious mental health problems and even suicide. In many countries around the world, possible age restrictions for access to social media platforms are currently being discussed. At the end of 2025, Australia became the first country in the world to introduce a general social media ban for under-16s. In Germany, Bundestag President Julia Klöckner has asked the German Ethics Council to look into the issue. The expert panel has now published its recommendations.
What risks do digital media pose for children and young people?
Depression, anxiety, eating disorders, sleep problems, stress and suicidal thoughts: more and more studies suggest that social media can seriously endanger the health of young people. For example, children and young people are confronted with texts, images and videos that normalize behaviors such as eating disorders and self-harm. Depictions of violence and pornography are also inadequately regulated. There is also the risk of bullying in the digital world.
From the point of view of experts, the addictive potential of many applications is particularly problematic. “Social media platforms operate according to the profit generation model. They want to keep users engaged for as long as possible so that they continue to use the platform,” explains Julia Brailovskaia from the German Center for Mental Health. “Different aspects should lead to staying on the platform: scrolling, likes, push messages. Visual and auditory stimuli can also be attractive. And of course the social factor.”
Why does the Ethics Council speak out against a legal minimum age for social media?
Despite these risks, the German Ethics Council rejects a legally required minimum age for social media use. “Children and young people today are growing up with many digital offerings that play an important role in meeting their communication and information needs,” says the chairman of the German Ethics Council, Helmut Frister. “The task is to balance the necessary protection of young people with their digital participation and empowerment interests. In the opinion of the German Ethics Council, the introduction of a legal minimum age for social media is not suitable for this.”
From the experts’ point of view, a general age restriction would disproportionately restrict the right to participation of children and young people and would also make it more difficult for them to develop media skills. In addition, according to the Ethics Council, such bans would mean an interference with the parents’ freedom to raise children and would not take into account the fact that children can differ significantly in their level of maturity.
Furthermore, initial experiences from Australia show that many young people circumvent the ban anyway. According to experts, secret use of social media could pose even greater risks. There are also other problematic applications outside of social media that have hardly been regulated to date: “Generative AI, such as chatbots and image generators, are increasingly being used by children and young people – with no less important risks,” says Judith Simon, spokeswoman for the Ethics Council’s statement.
What does the Ethics Council recommend instead?
Instead of age limits, the Ethics Council advocates a differentiated protection concept. “Measures to protect children and young people should primarily aim to reduce risks in digital environments and keep them controllable, rather than comprehensively preventing their use,” the statement says. Politicians must hold platform operators more accountable than before. For example, the experts suggest generally banning elements such as endless feeds that promote addictive behavior. It is also important to have better options for preventing unwanted contact with potentially malicious actors and for filtering, blocking and reporting problematic content.
“The regulation of online platforms in the European Union’s Digital Services Act, which has been in force since February 2024, already provides a good basis for such a protection concept,” says Helmut Frister. “The requirements to reduce dangers for children and young people online must be implemented much more effectively and providers must be held more accountable.” Applications that are classified as particularly risky could also be given age limits in the concept now proposed. These could also be extended to certain AI applications.
What role should parents play?
In addition to platform operators and politicians, the Ethics Council would also like to make parents more responsible and thus strengthen their freedom to raise children. According to the committee’s proposals, guardians should have the opportunity to activate certain functions on their children’s devices, even if these are actually only recommended for older ages. A basic requirement for this are reliable technical solutions.
“Parents also need serious and independent information about dangers online, clear age recommendations for digital offerings from voluntary self-regulation institutions and the opportunity to get advice and help from digital sponsors,” says Simon. According to the Ethics Council, children and young people themselves should also be included in the decisions.
What else does the Ethics Council recommend?
As further measures, the experts advocate further research into the effects of digital media on children and young people as well as the development of new platforms according to European standards that can offer an alternative to the offerings of large social media companies.
Schools should play an important role in promoting media literacy among young people. Analogue activities and social interactions should also be strengthened both at school and in everyday life outside of school – for example through attractive youth meeting rooms as well as nature education, cultural and sporting leisure activities at the local level. “Even a little less social media use improves mental health,” says Brailovskaia.
Source: German Ethics CouncilScience Media Center Germany