Turkey bans social media for under-15s from 1 November

Turkey has banned the use of social media by children under 15, becoming the latest country to restrict young people's access to the platforms over concerns about harm to children.

The decision was published in the official gazette on Saturday and will take effect on 1 November. It follows a law adopted by the Turkish parliament in April.

What the rules require

Under the published text, social media providers must "take the necessary technical and administrative measures, including age verification, to implement" the protection of young users. The rules also state that no service likely to produce an addictive effect in children may be offered.

The government's move places Turkey alongside a growing number of countries that have begun, or are considering, banning social media for children in order to protect them from risks linked to the digital world. Those risks, as listed in the published reporting on the decision, include screen addiction, lack of sleep, bullying and eating disorders.

Concerns about the wider context

The law arrives during what the reporting describes as a period of restrictions on freedom of expression in Turkey, affecting LGBT+ communities, the media and the political sphere. A number of social media accounts have been blocked in recent weeks.

The decision was illustrated in coverage by a photograph, taken in Créteil in France on 19 June 2026, showing a smartphone screen displaying a folder of social media applications including TikTok, Instagram, X, Snapchat, YouTube, Facebook, Threads, Discord and Messenger. The accompanying caption noted that the United Arab Emirates government has issued a ministerial decree setting 15 as the minimum legal age to own and use a social media account.

The wider picture for families

For families in the UK following action on social media and young people, the Turkish ban sits alongside a busy period for social media court cases in the United States, where claims over harm to children continue to move through the courts.

According to background material from the Insurance Journal's reporting on social media addiction trials, a trial of two further personal injury plaintiffs against Meta, YouTube and Snap is set to begin in Los Angeles on 28 October 2026, while a second trial due in July did not go ahead after TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube settled with the plaintiff. A Los Angeles jury found Meta, over Instagram, and Google, over YouTube, liable in the case of a young woman known as K.G.M. on 25 March 2026. Meta and Google are appealing, after the trial judge denied their post-trial motions on 9 June 2026. The appeals raise questions about legal protections for technology companies over content posted by other people, including Section 230.

Separately, a judge in Texas found TikTok liable on 10 September 2026 for deceiving parents about how safe the app is, with a trial on penalties due the following month, and the first school district test case, brought by a county school district in Kentucky, settled before trial. The terms were not disclosed in court; agreements later released under a public-records request were reported to total about US$27 million. In the UK, the Law Commission is examining whether the Consumer Protection Act 1987, which has usually applied to physical products, fits the digital age.

Anyone affected by the issues in this article can contact Samaritans free on 116 123 or at samaritans.org.