09 Feb 2026 Spain takes a stand: Regulating Big Tech to protect children

According to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, social media platforms have become a “toxic, unpunished world” that “children were never meant to navigate alone.”

This sharp critique, delivered at the World Governments Summit in Dubai on 4 February, reflects growing global concern about the unchecked power of technology giants and the impact of their digital platforms on the mental health of children and youth.

During his intervention in Dubai, Sanchez also announced that Spain is planning to ban social media access for minors under the age of 16, becoming the first European country to implement such a measure.

The proposed legislation, which will be introduced as an amendment to an existing bill on digital protection for minors currently being reviewed by Spain’s parliament, requires platforms to implement “effective age verification systems – not just checkboxes, but real barriers that work.” Spain’s package of measures also includes holding platform executives criminally liable for failing to remove illegal or hateful content, sanctioning those who amplify harmful content, and tracking how platforms fuel division.

There is plenty of evidence supporting this type of regulatory action. In the United States, the country’s Surgeon General’s Advisory on Social Media and Youth Mental Health has warned that “we cannot conclude social media is sufficiently safe for children and adolescents.”

This is based on research that shows that adolescents spending more than three hours daily on social media face double the risk of experiencing mental health disorders. Excessive use has also been linked to sleep problems, attention difficulties, cyberbullying, and body image issues.

Spain joins a growing number of countries moving in this direction. Australia became the world’s first country to implement such a ban, in December 2025. France recently approved a bill restricting access to these platforms for people under 15. Denmark, the United Kingdom, and Greece are considering similar measures, which may eventually lead to similar pan-European regulations.

The response from tech executives to Spain’s announcement has been quite aggressive.

Elon Musk, owner of X, responded to Sánchez’s announcement by calling him a “true fascist totalitarian.” Telegram founder Pavel Durov accused Spain’s government of “pushing dangerous new regulations that threaten your internet freedoms” and claimed the measures would turn Spain “into a surveillance state under the guise of ‘protection.’”

Such rhetoric equates democratic regulation with authoritarianism and calls the commitment of these companies to their user’s wellbeing into question.

While the details of Spain’s regulation are still being finalized, WACC sees the country’s proposed actions as a positive development. Such regulations reassert the legitimate role of democratic states in reining in the power of Big Tech in ways that prioritize the public good over private profit.

For too long, technology companies have operated with minimal oversight, designing platforms optimized for engagement and advertising revenue rather than user wellbeing. The Spanish government’s willingness to establish clear boundaries and to hold companies accountable represents a necessary rebalancing of democratic governance and corporate power.

We also believe that Spain’s initiative sparks a broader conversation about the impact of social media on people’s mental health. This needs to become a society-wide conversation that centers the public interest and public health over private profits, especially as AI creates new capabilities to amplify harmful content.

WACC also hopes that Spain’s efforts will go beyond prohibition to include initiatives promoting critical media literacy among youth.

As education researcher Paula Marcelo has noted, “The success of the proposal won’t be in preventing a young person from touching a phone until they turn 16, but in accompanying and supporting families to educate children in healthy and critical use of social media.”

While bans can be helpful, young people also need to be equipped with the skills to navigate digital environments critically, to recognize manipulation and disinformation, and to participate as active citizens in democratic life.

WACC has long promoted such critical media literacy approaches, most notably through our work with partner organization Helping Hand in Georgia. In 2021, WACC supported projects empowering disadvantaged youth from secondary schools and universities to develop digital skills that address social challenges and harmful behaviour.

A subsequent project trained young people as digital citizenship ambassadors, equipping them with tools to navigate the digital world safely and promote responsible online behavior among their peers. As Helping Hand’s Executive Director observed, young people “should not be considered just an affected population, but also as highly effective partners in the efforts to fight disinformation and misinformation.”

From our perspective, the Helping Hand experience in Georgia shows that media literacy initiatives can empower young people not merely to protect themselves from harm, but to become active defenders of communication rights. We believe that Spain’s regulatory framework would be significantly strengthened by incorporating similar approaches that foster civic engagement and active citizenship.

For WACC, the question is not whether to regulate tech platforms, but how to do so in ways that protect the vulnerable, prioritize genuine human connection and social trust, and strengthen democracy. Spain has taken an important step in this direction. Let us hope other countries and relevant stakeholders follow suit.

Editorial illustration generated using AI to accompany commentary on social media regulation.