Social Media Bans for Kids Are Failing—Here's What Works
Banning kids from social media doesn't work; here's what actually keeps them safe.
Social media bans are stacking up: France joined Australia in restricting minors' access to social media — barring under-15s from major platforms before the country's top court blocked the ban on human rights grounds. The UK aims to forbid under-16s from Facebook, TikTok, and other platforms in early 2027, and the EU has announced its own plan to prohibit social media for kids under 15.
But early lessons from Australia, which enacted a ban in 2024, show these sorts of age restrictions are easily circumvented — and, the authors argue, that's not a problem we need to solve. They lay out what we ought to do instead to keep kids safe. Also in this edition: the promises and pitfalls of pet life extension (drugs, cloning, even cryonics), and Form Energy's iron batteries, which can store energy for 100 hours using "reversible rusting."
- Social media bans for kids are easily bypassed, so experts recommend digital literacy and safer platform design instead.
- Pet life extension through biotech raises ethical questions about quality of life versus longevity.
- Form Energy's iron-air batteries could store renewable energy for 100 hours, making clean power more reliable.
Why It Matters
Parents and policymakers need effective ways to protect kids online, not just bans that don't work.