---
title: "EU KIDS ACT Would Impose Broad Restrictions on the Entire Internet, Says ITIF"
summary: |-
  Following the European Commission’s proposed EU KIDS ACT, which would ban users under 13 from accessing social media, ITIF released the following statement from Patrick Grady, Head of European Tech.
date: "2026-09-17"
content_type: "Press Releases"
canonical_url: "https://itif.org/publications/2026/09/17/eu-kids-act-would-impose-broad-restrictions-on-the-entire-internet-says-itif/"
---

# EU KIDS ACT Would Impose Broad Restrictions on the Entire Internet, Says ITIF

BRUSSELS—Following the European Commission’s [proposed](https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/eu-kids-act-restrict-social-media-platforms-access-children-eu) EU Keeping Internet Digital Spaces Accountable and Trustworthy (EU KIDS ACT), which would ban users under 13 from accessing social media, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) released the following statement from Patrick Grady, Head of European Tech:

> *The proposed KIDS ACT regulates not only social media, but online video games, video-sharing platforms, and AI services. This broad scope has led to cross-category restrictions that don’t reflect how kids use the Internet, such as one-hour time limits for online video games. It also treats all social media sites the same, even if they have different features and functionalities. Meanwhile, entire categories of emerging tools like AI tutors are curbed too soon. And as the Internet evolves, the lines between the proposed categories will blur.*

> *Safeguarding children online is as difficult as it is offline. Children face new and emerging risks. They also have rights to access information, to leisure and play, to associate freely, and to engage with culture. Any new rules governing their online environment should keep these rights in mind and target specific, evidence-based risks.*

> *Politicians are responding to parents' concerns about children's safety online. The EU, whose members are writing divergent rules, has rightly proposed a harmonized approach that will better protect the single market. It should take the necessary time to get this right and ensure new rules do not undermine its ambition to foster an innovative digital economy.*

**Contact:** Nicole Hinojosa, [nhinojosa@itif.org](mailto:nhinojosa@itif.org)

---
*Source: Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF)*
*URL: https://itif.org/publications/2026/09/17/eu-kids-act-would-impose-broad-restrictions-on-the-entire-internet-says-itif/*