Meta will let kids under 13 use WhatsApp with parent-managed accounts

Meta has announced that it’s introducing parent-managed accounts on WhatsApp. Designed to allow young people under the age of 13 to use the messaging platform more safely, these accounts feature new [...]

New Zealand rules out a VPN ban after a fierce privacy backlash

The New Zealand government has ruled out restricting or banning VPNs as part of its planned under-16 social media ban. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Education Minister Erica Stanford both moved [...]

Jury rules against Meta, orders $375 million fine in major child safety trial

A jury in New Mexico has found Meta liable for violating the state's consumer protection laws in a high-profile civil trial over child exploitation and other safety issues. One day after closing [...]

Ursula Von der Leyen pushes EU-wide social-media age protections for children

The European Commission president said an EU age-verification app is technically complete and that bloc-level rules on minimum social-media ages are next. France, Spain, and several others are already [...]

AI chatbot traffic grows seven times faster than social media but still trails by a factor of four

AI chatbot traffic is growing seven times faster than social media, but still has four times less total traffic, a Similarweb analysis shows. The data reveals differences in device usage and user beha [...]

The US government wants Reddit to snitch on one of its users through a grand jury

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has a certain Redditor in its crosshairs and it's now strong-arming the social media platform to reveal who they are with a grand jury subpoena, according to a [...]

Meta is giving Threads on web a redesign that finally adds direct messages

Meta is starting to test a long-overdue facelift for Threads on web. The company's head of Threads Connor Hayes showed off a new look for the web version of Threads that finally adds direct messa [...]

DOJ refuses to help French authorities in criminal probe of X

The US Department of Justice is siding with X, as the social media platform owned by Elon Musk navigates a criminal investigation unfolding in France. As first reported by The Wall Street Journal, the [...]

Norway plans to ban social media for children under 16 and shift age verification liability to platforms

The minority Labour government, led by PM Jonas Gahr Støre, announced the legislation on Friday. The age threshold has been raised from the 15-year limit proposed in the 2025 consultation, aligning N [...]