EU Expands Child Safety Rules For Social Media Platforms

European Regulatory Initiatives

The European Union is preparing new measures aimed at limiting “addictive design” features used by major social media platforms, including TikTok and Instagram. Speaking at the European Summit on Artificial Intelligence and Children in Denmark, Ursula von der Leyen said regulators are focusing on features such as infinite scrolling, autoplay and push notifications, which have increasingly come under scrutiny over their impact on children and teenagers. The planned measures form part of a broader European effort to strengthen protections for minors online.

Innovative Age Verification Technologies

Alongside the proposed restrictions, the EU is also developing a new age-verification application designed to strengthen access controls for younger users. Von der Leyen described the technology as meeting some of the world’s highest privacy standards and said it is expected to integrate into digital wallets across EU member states. The system is intended to help online platforms enforce age-related restrictions more consistently across the bloc.

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Global Implications And U.S. Scrutiny

The EU’s tougher regulatory approach mirrors similar discussions taking place internationally. Australia has already introduced broad social media restrictions for users under 16, while governments in Spain, France and the United Kingdom are also considering additional child safety measures. In the United States, technology companies, including Apple, Meta and Google, continue facing growing political and legal scrutiny over the design of digital platforms used by teenagers.

Legal Landscape And Future Prospects

Recent U.S. court rulings have drawn attention to the potential effects of features such as autoplay and infinite scrolling on teenage behaviour and mental health. At the same time, investigations under the EU’s Digital Services Act have examined age-verification practices across major social media platforms, including services operated by Meta. European regulators are expected to introduce additional legal proposals as early as this summer, potentially expanding oversight of platform design and child safety requirements across the region.

Outlook

The growing regulatory pressure reflects broader international efforts to balance digital innovation with stronger protections for younger users online. As governments and technology companies continue negotiating new rules around platform design, child safety is becoming an increasingly central issue in global tech regulation.

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Cyprus Expects More French Visitors In 2027 As Air Capacity Expands

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

September 18, 2026

Cyprus expects more French visitors in 2027 as airlines increase capacity between the two countries, Tourism Deputy Minister Kostas Koumis said after meetings with tour operators in Paris.

France, one of Cyprus’ key tourism markets, has had a difficult 2026. French arrivals fell 46% year over year to 8,453 in August, from 15,663 a year earlier, according to the Statistical Service of Cyprus (Cystat). August arrivals were also nearly 50% below the 16,798 recorded in the same month of 2024.

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Overall, Cyprus received 2.82 million tourist arrivals between January and August, down 7% from the same period in 2025.

Air Connectivity Supports 2027 Outlook

Koumis discussed the 2027 outlook with senior executives from tour operators offering Cyprus holidays during the IFTM Top Resa travel trade fair in Paris.

Higher air capacity between France and Cyprus was a key focus of the talks. Participants also discussed the impact of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East on the French market and Cyprus’ efforts to adapt its tourism offering to French travelers.

“The French market is undoubtedly an extremely important market for our country’s tourism,” Koumis said, adding that France had regained importance only a few years ago and still had room to grow.

Improved air connectivity will be an important factor in that expansion, according to Koumis. “It is now clear that air connectivity between France and Cyprus is improving significantly, which is a basic prerequisite for the further growth of the market,” he said.

Cyprus Promotes Tourism And Regional Cooperation

Koumis attended the opening of IFTM Top Resa at the invitation of French Tourism Minister Serge Papin, who later visited the Cyprus stand. Held from Sept. 15 to 17 at Paris Porte de Versailles, the event brought together more than 32,000 tourism professionals representing 177 destinations and 1,650 brands, according to organizers.

During his visit, Koumis also met Egyptian Tourism Minister Sherif Fathy. Cyprus and Egypt reaffirmed their tourism cooperation and discussed opportunities to strengthen ties further.

French media interviews covered Cyprus’ tourism offering, infrastructure and services, along with efforts to develop specialized tourism products. Regional instability weighed on arrivals in 2026, particularly during the spring, although the decline narrowed over the summer.

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