In a major legislative move aimed at protecting children’s mental health and online safety, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government has officially announced a total ban on social media usage for children under the age of 15. The UAE Cabinet passed a special resolution on Thursday, addressing growing global concerns that the digital revolution and shifting lifestyles are placing the future and well-being of young children at serious risk. According to the UAE’s official news agency, WAM, children under 15 are now strictly prohibited from creating or maintaining personal accounts on any social media platforms.
The newly enacted law explicitly covers popular networks including Instagram, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), and Facebook. Under the strict regulations, it is now illegal for individuals under the designated age limit to open new accounts, and any existing profiles must be deactivated immediately. Government officials stated that the primary objective of this historic law is to safeguard the younger generation from pervasive online threats such as cyberbullying, exposure to explicit content, and the rapidly growing issue of social media addiction, which disrupts child development.
With this move, the UAE joins a growing list of progressive nations actively enacting stringent legal frameworks to control the adverse effects of digital platforms on minors. Developed countries such as Australia, the United Kingdom, and Canada have already implemented strict age-verification barriers, and the Gulf nation is now set to execute one of the most rigorous enforcement structures in the region. Moving forward, social media conglomerates operating within the UAE will be legally mandated to deploy advanced, foolproof age-verification technologies to ensure absolute compliance with the new safety laws.
