Türkiye's social media age limit of 15 takes effect in November

Türkiye published a regulation on 10 October 2026 preventing social network providers from offering services to children under 15, with the new rules taking effect on 1 November 2026. Platforms must verify ages at account creation, and existing accounts must complete verification by 31 March 2027, with accounts belonging to children under 15 required to be closed. Users aged 15 to 17 will receive separate, more protective services with restricted features including disabled direct messaging from non-followers, prohibited algorithmic content recommendations, and mandatory parental controls.

Detection modules that identify escalating risk in direct messages address the underlying harm that age-gating alone cannot eliminate. When a jurisdiction bars under-15 access while permitting 15-to-17-year-olds onto platforms, offenders adapt, targeting the newly accessible cohort in channels the ban does not monitor. Real-time pattern recognition in private conversations catches coercion, sustained targeting and age-inappropriate contact at the point of approach, surfacing a child in acute distress to a parent or professional and enabling rapid escalation in an emergency, functioning across Instagram, Snapchat, Discord, Roblox and other platforms regardless of the account holder's verified age or jurisdiction.