Florida passes law to restrict social media for teens

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a law Monday restricting the use of social media for children under 16 years of age. The initiative will take effect on Jan. 1, 2025.

With the decision, children under the age of 14 will not be allowed to open or maintain a social networking account in the state. While 14- and 15-year-olds will need parental consent to be able to use these platforms.

"We're trying to help parents navigate this very difficult terrain that we have now with raising kids," DeSantis said upon signing the new law in remarks picked up by AFP.

Likewise, DeSantis' office explained, "In addition to protecting children from the dangers of social media, HB 3 requires pornographic or sexually explicit websites to use age verification to prevent minors from accessing sites that are inappropriate for children."

In that sense, Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives Paul Renner highlighted that social media has have harmed minors.

"More crimes against children happen on social media than any other venue," said Renner, adding that social media has had "a devastating effect on kids."

Renner continued: "The internet has become a dark alley for our children where predators target them and dangerous social media leads to higher rates of depression, self-harm, and even suicide."