Christodoulides supported the European initiative to restrict children’s access to social networks

The Government of Cyprus has joined a pan-European initiative to introduce a unified "digital age of majority" — a measure aimed at protecting children on the Internet. The proposal provides for setting a minimum age for access to social networks and other online platforms, as well as strengthening control over the protection of minors’ personal data.

President Nikos Christodoulides signed a joint letter to the President of the European Commission together with the leaders of France, Greece, Spain, Slovenia, and Denmark. The document emphasizes that the lack of unified standards allows major Internet companies to ignore principles of protecting underage users. The EU leaders called on the European Commission to develop common rules regulating children’s access to digital services and preventing abuse by online platforms.

Special attention is given to risks related to cyberbullying, sexual harassment, social media addiction, and the spread of harmful content. It is also proposed to introduce a system for verifying users’ age that will restrict access to undesirable materials without violating the right to privacy.

Cyprus is already participating in an EU pilot project to implement anonymous digital identification technology designed for safe online age verification. The authorities emphasize that this system will not collect unnecessary data and will ensure the protection of users’ private information.

On the eve of Cyprus’ presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2026, the government announced that the protection of children in the digital space will become one of the main priorities of Cyprus’s EU agenda.