Türkiye has introduced new regulations prohibiting social media providers from offering services to children under the age of 15, with additional requirements aimed at protecting minors online.
Under the regulations, service providers “cannot provide services to children who have not reached the age of 15.”
Platforms must also offer age-appropriate services and take necessary measures to protect users aged 15 and above, while considering minors’ best interests and their physical, mental, psychological, social and emotional development.
The regulations require age-verification systems to prioritise personal data protection. Verification methods should establish whether a user meets the minimum age requirement without unnecessarily identifying the individual.
The rules also require providers to make their age-verification methods, algorithmic systems and child-protection policies transparent and subject to scrutiny.
These measures must be “clear, auditable and testable for users, parents and the directorate,” the regulations state.
Social media providers are also required to introduce clear and user-friendly parental control tools to help parents monitor and manage their children’s online activities.
The new regulations follow legislation on social media adopted by the Turkish parliament in April, as the country moves to strengthen safeguards for minors using online platforms.
