The debate on regulating social media access for children under 16 has reached the Islamabad High Court (IHC), with petitioners calling for comprehensive laws, effective age verification systems, and enhanced protections for minors. This development places Pakistan within a broader global discussion on balancing children’s online safety with their digital rights.
The petition, presented by advocates Muhammad Jalal Haider and Yahya Farid Khawaja, requests the federal government to enact legislation and establish a regulatory framework specifically addressing social media use by children under 16. The petitioners emphasize the need for a robust mechanism to verify users’ ages, warning that the current lack of such measures exposes children to cyberbullying, harassment, and harmful or inappropriate content.
In addition, the petition urges the government to formulate policies safeguarding children’s digital rights, privacy, and mental and physical well-being, while assigning clear responsibilities to social media platforms for protecting young users. The petition references policies adopted or proposed by countries like Australia, France, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Spain, where governments have implemented or considered safeguards such as age limits, parental consent requirements, and age-verification systems to regulate minors’ social media access.
Invoking the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and General Comment No. 25, the petition argues that ensuring children’s best interests is a legal duty of the state rather than merely a policy goal. It also highlights that the absence of effective age verification undermines enforcement of protections designed to shield minors from online dangers.
The petitioners have requested that the Islamabad High Court direct the federal government to legislate on social media use by children under 16 and establish an institutional body to oversee their digital protection. The Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Law and Justice, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), and Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) have all been named as respondents in the case.
Internationally, Australia has set a minimum age of 16 for accounts on designated social media platforms. France requires parental authorization for children under 15 to register on social media, while Spain plans to ban social media access for under-16s and mandate effective age-verification systems. New Zealand has proposed legislation aimed at preventing under-16s from accessing certain platforms. These approaches vary significantly, ranging from parental consent to platform responsibility and outright age-based restrictions.
Notably, Pakistan’s discussion on this issue is not new. In February, the IHC had already sought a detailed report from the federal government regarding social media regulation for children under 16, questioning authorities about age-verification methods, monitoring, enforcement, and progress on establishing a Social Media Protection and Regulatory Authority.
Furthermore, the topic has also been raised in the Punjab Assembly. A resolution submitted last month called for a nationwide ban on social media accounts for children under 16 without parental consent. It advocated for a reliable age-verification system, increased accountability for social media companies, and measures against cyberbullying, online sexual exploitation, inappropriate content, and digital addiction.
This recent petition reiterates the importance of protecting children’s digital rights and privacy, again referencing the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and General Comment No. 25 to stress that safeguarding children’s best interests is a binding legal responsibility for the state.
