Egypt bans social media accounts for under-13s and mandates “safe mode” for ages 13-15

Teenage boys look at their smartphones in a village near Morzine, France. Europe has built a new app to help tech platforms verify users' ages in hopes of protecting young people online. Matt Cardy/Getty Images Egyptian authorities declared a major digital crackdown on Thursday, barring children under the age of 13 from holding independent social media accounts and slapping strict mandatory restrictions on users under 15. In a joint decree issued by the Supreme Council for Media Regulation (SCMR) and the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA), social media platforms operate under a tough new mandate designed to shield children and young teenagers from digital risks. Under the newly unveiled regulations, platforms are strictly forbidden from allowing children under 13 to create or activate independent personal accounts. For young teens aged 13 to under 15, personal accounts will still be permitted—but with a heavy catch. Platforms must automatically and mandatorily activate “Safe Mode” on these accounts, and the setting cannot be unilaterally disabled by the underage user as long as they remain in that age bracket. To ensure the rules are not easily skirted, the decree compels tech platforms to deploy effective age-verification protocols and actively prevent users from manipulating age boundaries. Companies must audit existing accounts and take immediate action against any profile confirmed or suspected to belong to a user under 15. However, a formal appeals process must be provided to correct any legitimate age-verification errors. Officials frame the sweeping measures as a direct response to directives from President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi aimed at safeguarding youth from the dangers of social media misuse and forging a safer online ecosystem. Underscoring the broader vision, Khaled Abdel Aziz, Chairman of the SCMR, emphasized that digital child safety has become “a shared responsibility between the state, the family, society, and digital platforms.” He insisted that the objective is not to strip technology away from children, but rather to guarantee its safe, responsible, and age-appropriate use. Echoing this stance, NTRA Chief Executive Mohamed Shamroukh explained that the framework operates on the principle of “age- and risk-proportionate protection,” delivering varying tiers of security based on a user’s developmental age and exposure to online hazards. Tech firms have been put on a strict clock: platforms must bring their operations into full compliance within three months of the decree taking effect, and must submit a comprehensive operational blueprint and technical timeline detailing their execution strategy within the next 30 days.