Under-13 Rules

Why can’t children under the age of 13 have social media accounts?

There is no law that specifically says "children can not use social media", but there are legal and developmental reasons why social media companies write in their “terms of use” that a user must be at least 13 years old to have an account.

The first reason is that most "free" social media platforms contain advertisements. However, there are laws in the United States (where most social media companies are headquartered), in Canada and also here in Quebec that forbid advertising to children under the age of 13. 

Under the age of 13, most children are much more susceptible to influences in the world around them compared to older children and adults. This makes them more heavily affected by powerful media messages that are present in advertising.

The second reason has to do with the collection of personal information from people using social media platforms. This collection of data is explained in the "terms of use" of all social media platforms. Children under the age of 13, with their still developing minds, are not legally allowed to share personal information without their parents' approval. Social media companies have no way of knowing if a parent is approving the sharing of that personal information or not, so they simply do not allow children to create accounts on their services. 

In reading the terms of use of many social media platforms you may come across a notice about the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which is a Federal law in the United States. Most social media companies are based in the USA and therefore must comply with COPPA. 

Here in Quebec, we also have to take into account the very similar federal and provincial laws that apply locally. While very similar to the American COPPA, our laws offer more protection to children. If you would like to read more about the Canadian and Quebec laws about collecting personal information, you can visit the following links.