France’s top court strikes down social media ban for under-15s

France’s Constitutional Court has struck down a law that would have banned children under 15 from social media, ruling that it disproportionately infringed on freedom of expression and raised privacy concerns over age verification. The decision was handed down on Tuesday in Paris after a six‑month legal battle that saw the government defend the measure as a way to protect young users from harmful content and cyber‑bullying.

The ban was part of a broader push by President Emmanuel Macron’s administration to curb the influence of social media on the mental and physical health of minors. In 2023, the French Parliament approved a draft bill that would have required platforms to block accounts for users under 15 and imposed heavy fines for non‑compliance. Critics argued that the law would create a digital divide and that age‑verification tools could expose children to privacy risks. Parents and civil‑rights groups also warned that the measure could criminalise ordinary online activity, such as sharing photos with friends.

The Constitutional Court found that the proposed ban failed the proportionality test set by the European Convention on Human Rights. The court noted that the law would impede the right to free expression and that the privacy risks of mandatory age‑verification were too high for the level of protection it offered. In a statement, the court said that “the state must not impose blanket restrictions that affect the whole population of minors, especially when less intrusive measures are available.” The decision has been welcomed by digital‑rights advocates, but some lawmakers have called for a re‑draft that focuses on targeted content moderation rather than a blanket ban.

In response, the government has announced it will draft a revised bill that retains the goal of protecting children but replaces the outright ban with stricter content‑moderation rules, clearer age‑verification procedures, and stronger penalties for platforms that fail to comply. Macron said the new proposal will be presented to Parliament by the end of the year. The debate highlights a growing global conversation about how best to balance the benefits of digital connectivity with the need to safeguard younger users from online harms.