The measure represents a solution effective and necessary to combat the problem of minors’ addiction to social networks, according to Greek officials. Greece has officially taken a definitive legislative step that will bar children under 15 from accessing mainstream social media platforms starting January 1, 2027.
Parliamentary Showdown and the Architecture of the Kids Wallet
Following an intense parliamentary debate late into the night, the conservative government of Nea Dimokratia successfully pushed the bill through the Hellenic Parliament, though it passed solely on the strength of the governing majority. According to reporting by Corriere della Sera, opposition parties mounted stiff resistance, with the Greek Communist Party (KKE) and Plefsi Eleftherias opposing the measure from the outset, joined in the final vote by Hellenic Solution, Syriza, and Niki, while Pasok chose abstention.
Dimitris Papastergiou, Minister of Digital Governance and Artificial Intelligence, explained that the system is designed to interface with platforms to verify whether an account holder has reached 15 years of age. As reported by Corriere della Sera, Papastergiou assured that the application will not monitor messages, browse pages, or transmit raw birthdates, functioning instead as a cryptographic validator of age status.
Minister of State Akis Skertsos defended the legislation as necessary, effective, compatible with community law, and proportionate, while dismissing accusations from the opposition that the administration was exploiting youth protection for electoral and communications purposes, stating that the government has legislated since 2019 following the sole criteria of public health, safety, and the protection of vulnerable people. Skertsos also criticized the opposition for failing to support measures designed to guarantee the enforcement of prior restrictions on tobacco and alcohol consumption among minors.
Under the new statute, responsibility for verifying user age shifts squarely onto the tech companies themselves, and the ban applies equally to those who already possess an account and are under 15. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook will face severe penalties for non-compliance, while Snapchat had been included in plans presented by the government in previous months, and messaging applications alongside platforms like WhatsApp, Viber, and YouTube remained outside the envisaged perimeter. Kyriakos Mitsotakis granted digital service providers a strict timeline of just over two months to adapt their compliance frameworks.
Global Precedents and the Patchwork European Landscape
Greece joins a rapidly expanding international movement targeting youth digital consumption. Australia established an early global benchmark by enacting a ban for users under 16, though data from the eSafety regulator indicates that over 80 percent of teenagers aged 10 to 15 have found ways to bypass those restrictions. In the United States, although no federal law exists, Meta reached a settlement of approximately 18 billion dollars with a coalition of states to resolve a historic lawsuit regarding youth social media addiction.
Domestic Pressures and Legislative Momentum in Italy
The Greek decision has immediately resonated in Rome, where Italian political leaders are reassessing stalled domestic proposals. Giorgia Meloni recently voiced support for restrictions targeting users under 14, prompting renewed calls from parliamentary figures to fast-track pending legislation. Lavinia Mennuni of Fratelli d’Italia, the primary author of a bipartisan bill currently stalled in the Senate, urged parliamentarians to capitalize on the renewed political consensus, emphasizing Credo importante che si debba dare seguito all’invito del Presidente del Consiglio Giorgia Meloni che il Parlamento riprenda il lavoro fin qui fatto in Senato per approvare la legge
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Simultaneously, opposition voices are pushing for immediate legislative action by attaching amendments to existing security decrees. Marianna Madia of Casa Riformista announced plans to table an amendment to the latest security decree, testing the governing majority’s legislative commitment.
A European Regulatory Experiment
Greece has entered into a regulatory experiment involving multiple governments, participating alongside Cyprus, France, Ireland, Italy, Spain, and Denmark in a group of seven European Union countries working alongside the European Commission to develop common age verification systems.
As governments from Athens to Canberra grapple with the technical realities of age verification, the coming months will test whether digital platforms can successfully implement cryptographic barriers without dismantling user privacy.
