Greece announces campaign against ‘website addiction’

ATHENS, Greece (AFP) – Greece on Monday announced a campaign to protect teens from “website addiction” after a similar move by Australia targeting social media companies last month.

Conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said his government would introduce a “step-by-step” national strategy to inform parents and children, and encourage social media firms to “show responsibility”.

“A huge experiment on our children’s brains is underway at this very moment… this must stop,” Mitsotakis said at the campaign launch in Athens.

“A reaction is needed, and I want Greece to play a leading role.”

Addressing social media firms, he added: “You have already made a lot of money, you do not need to make money out of children and teenagers, when we know very well that what you are doing is dangerous for their mental health.”

“Platforms understand that the pressure will increase significantly,” he said.

Officials speaking at the launch said at least one in ten Greek teens had a “serious” web addiction problem.

The measures include a new parental control website offering advice on how to install browsing safeguards on children’s phones.

By early April, Greece will also introduce an age verification tool and daily browsing limits associated with a specific device, officials said.

In a speech to the United Nations in September, Mitsotakis warned that heavy use of social media was linked to “depression, feelings of isolation, sleep deprivation and addiction”.

He praised Australia, which in November approved a law ordering social media firms like Facebook, Instagram and X to take “reasonable steps” to prevent children under 16 from having accounts.

Social media firms that fail to comply with the ban, which will come into effect after a year, face fines of up to Aus$50 million (US$31 million) for “systemic breaches”.

The law has received much criticism, including from the UN children’s charity UNICEF, which warned that it could push kids into “covert and unregulated” spaces online.

Lawmakers from Spain to Florida have proposed social media bans for young teens, though none of the measures have been implemented yet.

China has restricted access for minors since 2021, with under-14s not allowed to spend more than 40 minutes a day on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok.