The Romanian Senate adopted by tacit approval a bill banning access to social media for people under 15. The deadline for debate and voting expired without an explicit decision in plenary, meaning the proposal is considered to have been adopted by the first chamber. The final decision is yet to be made by the Chamber of Deputies, Agerpres reports.
The bill obliges online platform providers to take all necessary measures to prevent children under 15 from accessing and using social media. Platforms will have to use effective age-verification mechanisms while complying with privacy and personal data protection rules.
The bill stipulates that verification must be carried out through solutions recognised by the European Union or through mechanisms aligned with the guidelines for implementing the Digital Services Act. “A purely declarative statement of the user’s age is not considered sufficient,” the text states.
Additional restrictions for minors
Users between 15 and 18 will not be subject to a complete ban, but to a higher level of protection. Providers will have to implement adequate and proportionate measures to limit systemic risks associated with the use of social media.
For all persons under 18, targeted advertising based on profiling must be disabled by default. Direct messages from users who are not on the list of approved contacts will also be restricted. Minors’ profiles must be private by default, so that their content is visible only to approved contacts.
The bill also provides for the activation of tools to control the time spent on the platforms, as well as periodic notifications to users.
Fines of up to 2 percent of global turnover
Failure to comply with the requirements will constitute an administrative offence. The proposed penalties range from 0.5 to 2 percent of the provider’s global annual turnover for the previous financial year.
In cases of serious and repeated violations, the bill also allows for the provider’s operations to be suspended in Romania. The measure may be applied if financial penalties and compliance actions prove insufficient.
After its adoption by the Senate, the bill must be considered by the Chamber of Deputies, which has the final say on the proposal.
Sources: bta.bg, digi24.ro