Karnataka High Court recommends age restrictions for social media users

The Karnataka High Court has proposed a significant recommendation, suggesting that the government should contemplate imposing age restrictions on social media users. 

The court further recommended that platforms should verify the age of users through documents such as Aadhaar cards, a process similar to what online gaming platforms are obligated to perform.

A bench comprising Justices G Narender and Vijaykumar A Patil raised concerns about the excessive use of social media by school-going children and questioned whether these young users, possibly aged 17 or 18, possess the maturity required to discern what is in the best interest of the nation. Justice Narender expressed the opinion that users should be at least 21 years old.

This proposal emerged during a hearing related to an appeal by X (formerly Twitter) in a case concerning the government's directives to block specific tweets and accounts in 2021 and 2022. 

Initially, a single judge bench had rejected the social media platform's petition and imposed a fine of Rs 50 lakh for failing to block the accounts within the stipulated deadline.