The United Arab Emirates recently announced new regulations that set the minimum age for social media use to 15 years old, becoming the first Arab country to implement such a ban. According to this new regulation, children under the age of 15 will be completely prohibited from opening, using or operating personal accounts on various social platforms. They are not allowed to post content, comment, share information, or join public groups.
The new regulations also make differentiated arrangements for people aged 15 to 16: minors in this age group can still use social media under certain conditions, but they must accept "age-appropriate content control" and are subject to restrictions on interaction with unfamiliar users, screen time management tools, and parental supervision functions.
In order to implement age restrictions, the UAE requires social media companies to implement effective age verification mechanisms, including the use of digital identity verification and artificial intelligence technology. Simply relying on users to "self-declare their age" will no longer be considered a valid practice. Platforms need to disable existing accounts that have been registered by children under the age of 15 and take measures to prevent users from bypassing the age verification system.
In terms of data protection, the new regulations clearly require social media platforms not to use children's personal data for targeted advertising or behavioral profiling analysis to reduce the commercial use and potential infringement of minors. Social media companies will have a one-year transition period from the effective date of the new regulations to complete system transformation and compliance adjustments to meet various regulatory requirements proposed by the UAE government.