Ukraine considers social media restrictions for children

Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, is developing legislative measures to restrict children’s use of social media amid growing concerns over online safety and national security risks involving minors.

Speaking during a parliamentary session on April 8, Member of Parliament Yulia Grishina highlighted a sharp rise in security-related crimes involving young people, citing a 43-fold increase over the past three years, Caliber.Az reports via Ukrainian media. 

“Today we must address the issue of our children’s safety in the digital environment. Ukraine cannot remain on the sidelines regarding this issue,” said Grishina.

She referred to findings from a study conducted by the parliament’s research service, which pointed to widespread and intensive use of digital platforms among Ukrainian youth. According to the data, one in four teenagers spends seven or more hours online daily, while the majority maintain accounts on popular messaging and video-sharing apps such as Telegram and TikTok.

The study also found that one in three children in Ukraine encounters dangerous situations online, with a majority choosing not to report such incidents.

“Four out of five children have accounts on Telegram and TikTok. At the same time, one in three Ukrainian children faces dangerous situations. And the most alarming thing is that 60% of these children do not tell anyone about it. Furthermore, over the past three years, the number of crimes against national security involving minors has increased 43-fold. And 22% of those recruited by Russia are our children, colleagues,” she added.

By Sabina Mammadli