THE BROAD VIEW

More countries are outlawing social media for children. Will Singapore join them?

It is charting a third way for online child safety: rejecting blanket bans and industry self-regulation

    • Protecting children is increasingly taking precedence over earlier concerns about regulatory restraint.
    • Protecting children is increasingly taking precedence over earlier concerns about regulatory restraint. PHOTO: REUTERS
    Published Fri, Jul 24, 2026 · 12:00 PM

    [SINGAPORE] History suggests that once an issue is framed around child protection, it rarely moves backwards.

    Seat belt laws, restrictions on tobacco advertising and tighter rules on vaping all followed a similar path. Social media appears to be reaching a similar inflection point.

    On Tuesday (Jul 21), France became the first EU country to approve a blanket ban on social-media access for children under the age of 15.