{"id":36692,"date":"2026-02-16T18:20:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T10:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/"},"modified":"2026-02-16T18:20:00","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T10:20:00","slug":"u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/","title":{"rendered":"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Britain could bring in an Australian-style ban on social media for children under 16 as early as this year and close a loophole that left some AI chatbots outside safety rules, as part of government efforts to respond more quickly to digital risks.<br \/>Prime Minister Keir Starmer&#8217;s government last month launched a consultation on a social media ban for children under 16 and is now working to change legislation so it could bring in any changes within months of the consultation concluding.<br \/>Spain, Greece and Slovenia have also said they are \u200bworking on bans after Australia became the first country in the world to block access to under 16s. Scrutiny has since intensified further after Elon Musk&#8217;s flagship AI chatbot Grok was found to be generating nonconsensual sexualised images.<br \/>Britain&#8217;s 2023 Online Safety Act is one of the world&#8217;s strictest safety regimes, but it does not cover one-to-one interactions with AI chatbots unless they share information with other users, a loophole technology minister Liz Kendall said would soon be closed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Britain could bring in an Australian-style ban on social media for children under 16 as early as this year and close a loophole that left some AI chatbots outside safety rules, as part of government efforts to respond more quickly to digital risks.Prime Minister Keir Starmer&#8217;s government last month launched a consultation on a social [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36692","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots - Metro Plus<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots - Metro Plus\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Britain could bring in an Australian-style ban on social media for children under 16 as early as this year and close a loophole that left some AI chatbots outside safety rules, as part of government efforts to respond more quickly to digital risks.Prime Minister Keir Starmer&#8217;s government last month launched a consultation on a social [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Metro Plus\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-16T10:20:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Metro Admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Metro Admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/16\\\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/16\\\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Metro Admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6bbe2f487494b6f04d542440127c7895\"},\"headline\":\"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-16T10:20:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/16\\\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":186,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/16\\\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/16\\\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\\\/\",\"name\":\"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots - Metro Plus\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-16T10:20:00+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/16\\\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/16\\\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/16\\\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/\",\"name\":\"Metro Plus\",\"description\":\"Metro Plus\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Metro Plus\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/09\\\/cropped-metroplus1044.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/09\\\/cropped-metroplus1044.png\",\"width\":240,\"height\":169,\"caption\":\"Metro Plus\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6bbe2f487494b6f04d542440127c7895\",\"name\":\"Metro Admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/406741887e2b499d9f2b2d4de7792c34f5c1bdcb01722828c2466332139b8510?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/406741887e2b499d9f2b2d4de7792c34f5c1bdcb01722828c2466332139b8510?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/406741887e2b499d9f2b2d4de7792c34f5c1bdcb01722828c2466332139b8510?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Metro Admin\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/multimetro.hk\\\/plus\\\/author\\\/metroadmin\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots - Metro Plus","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots - Metro Plus","og_description":"Britain could bring in an Australian-style ban on social media for children under 16 as early as this year and close a loophole that left some AI chatbots outside safety rules, as part of government efforts to respond more quickly to digital risks.Prime Minister Keir Starmer&#8217;s government last month launched a consultation on a social [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/","og_site_name":"Metro Plus","article_published_time":"2026-02-16T10:20:00+00:00","author":"Metro Admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Metro Admin","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/"},"author":{"name":"Metro Admin","@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/#\/schema\/person\/6bbe2f487494b6f04d542440127c7895"},"headline":"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots","datePublished":"2026-02-16T10:20:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/"},"wordCount":186,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/#organization"},"articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/","url":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/","name":"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots - Metro Plus","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/#website"},"datePublished":"2026-02-16T10:20:00+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/2026\/02\/16\/u-k-eyes-rapid-ban-on-social-media-for-under-16s-curbs-to-ai-chatbots\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"U.K. eyes rapid ban on social media for under 16s, curbs to AI chatbots"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/#website","url":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/","name":"Metro Plus","description":"Metro Plus","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/#organization","name":"Metro Plus","url":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/cropped-metroplus1044.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/cropped-metroplus1044.png","width":240,"height":169,"caption":"Metro Plus"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/#\/schema\/person\/6bbe2f487494b6f04d542440127c7895","name":"Metro Admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/406741887e2b499d9f2b2d4de7792c34f5c1bdcb01722828c2466332139b8510?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/406741887e2b499d9f2b2d4de7792c34f5c1bdcb01722828c2466332139b8510?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/406741887e2b499d9f2b2d4de7792c34f5c1bdcb01722828c2466332139b8510?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Metro Admin"},"url":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/author\/metroadmin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36692","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36692"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36692\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36692"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36692"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/multimetro.hk\/plus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36692"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}