According to a CDU spokeswoman, the party conference in Stuttgart adopted a motion that calls on the federal government to “introduce a legal age limit of 14 years for the use of social networks.”

Similar proposals have already come from the SPD

She is also asked to define the “special need for protection up to the age of 16 in the digital space”. Similar proposals have already come from the co-governing SPD.

The Schleswig-Holstein regional association raised the issue at the party conference. An original proposal from the Northern CDU stipulated an age limit of 16 and several other demands. The commission appointed by the board, which discusses all applications before party conferences, initially recommended that this application be forwarded to specialist committees of the CDU and the Union parliamentary group. But then a new text was formulated and recommended for acceptance.

Application calls for regulations on age verification

The CDU is therefore committed to “age-appropriate and responsible digital growing up”. “We are guided by the conviction that children and young people are particularly in need of protection in the digital space,” says the approved application. “Where economic business models are specifically aimed at attracting attention, activating emotions and controlling behavior, the state cannot remain neutral.”

Specifically, the CDU is calling for legal regulations at national and European level that require platform operators to set up data protection-compliant age verification. A mere self-disclosure as a “click query” should not be sufficient. Violations should result in “severe fines”. The CDU is committed to EU-wide harmonization of age standards in order to prevent circumvention of the rules via other member states.

Greater media education in schools

The application states that the rules must be based on scientific expertise. The basis should be the recommendations of an expert commission set up by the federal government – it is expected to present recommendations in the summer. The CDU demands that the federal government be asked to implement the expected proposals together with the states.

This should be accompanied by greater media education in schools. Knowledge about how algorithms work and how to protect against cyberbullying and digital manipulation should be conveyed. Offers must also include parents and the living environment. Media literacy also strengthens “democratic resilience against disinformation and radicalization.”

With the party conference vote, the CDU is also calling for more transparency obligations. Legal regulations are needed to make the decisions of algorithms understandable. In addition, procedures would have to be created to delete illegal content more quickly. If you post illegal content or tolerate it on your platforms, you could face fines.

Also SPD proposal for age limit

Shortly before the party conference, Chancellor and CDU leader Friedrich Merz had already expressed sympathy for the push for a social media age limit – as well as for a specific proposal from the co-governing SPD.

Specifically, leading Social Democrats are proposing to technically link age restrictions for access to social media platforms with the digital wallet on the smartphone. It is scheduled to start in Germany at the beginning of 2027. Anyone who sets up an Instagram or Tiktok account should then have to prove their age via the wallet. Access should be excluded up to 14, and between 14 and 16 it should only be available with certain default settings. For everyone aged 16 and over, algorithms that suggest videos or other content should be switched off and must be activated.