90% of US Kids on Social Media Have Parental Permission

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Data presented to the US Senate Commerce Committee challenges a core assumption behind proposed social media age restrictions: that children are secretly accessing platforms behind their parents’ backs.

Research shared during a January 16, 2026 hearing on the Kids Off Social Media Act (KOSMA) shows that roughly 90% of American children under 13 who use social media have parental knowledge or permission.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation presented the findings as Congress debates legislation that would ban under-13s from platforms entirely and restrict algorithmic recommendations for under-17s.

The data reframes the policy debate. If most parents know their children have accounts and in many cases helped create them enforcement isn’t the primary issue. The question becomes whether government should override parental decisions.

Research Findings

The Electronic Frontier Foundation presented findings from multiple studies:

A 2024 study published in Academic Pediatrics found that 63.8% of American children under 13 have social media accounts. Of those, only 5.4% keep their accounts secret from parents.

That means approximately 90% of under-13s on social media have parental knowledge or permission.

The pattern continues for older children. Among 13-to-17-year-olds with social media accounts, only 6.9% keep them secret from parents.

Earlier research on Facebook use by 10-to-14-year-olds found that roughly 70% of parents helped create their child’s account. Between 82% and 95% of parents knew the account existed.

Similar patterns appear internationally. Ofcom’s 2022 UK study found up to two-thirds of social media users below age 13 had direct parental help accessing platforms.

Current Platform Rules

Every major platform already prohibits accounts for children under 13: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat, and Discord all enforce age restrictions, primarily due to the US Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).

The age restrictions exist. Children access platforms anyway. And in most cases, parents know about it or actively helped create the accounts.

Kids Off Social Media Act (KOSMA)

Sponsored by Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Brian Schatz (D-HI), KOSMA would:

Ban children under 13 from social media platforms entirely
Restrict algorithmic recommendations for users under 17
Require platforms to implement age verification systems

The bill shifts enforcement from parents to platforms through mandatory age verification.

Why Now

Rising rates of anxiety and depression among American teenagers have increased political attention on social media’s effects. Australia’s December 2025 implementation of an under-16 ban demonstrated large-scale enforcement is possible when platforms removed 4.7 million accounts in two weeks.

Multiple US states are advancing their own legislation. Virginia implemented a one-hour daily limit for under-16s on January 1, 2026. New York is proposing comprehensive online safety laws covering gaming platforms and AI chatbots.

The Debate

The EFF argues KOSMA removes parental choice by making platforms not families decide when children can access social media.

Supporters counter that parental permission doesn’t make early access safe, pointing to research on social media’s effects on pre-adolescent development.

European countries are advancing age-based social media restrictions:

France: Fast-tracking an under-15 ban for September 2026
Denmark: Implementing under-15 parental consent requirements
Spain: Pursuing under-16 parental consent laws
United Kingdom: Examining whether an under-16 ban would be effective

Australia’s under-16 ban took effect in December 2025. Platforms removed 4.7 million accounts in the first two weeks, though VPN usage surged 170% as teenagers sought workarounds.

The US debate over KOSMA reflects a broader international movement toward government-mandated age restrictions rather than relying on parental oversight alone.

KOSMA faces similar First Amendment challenges as other social media age verification laws currently in courts.

The House Committee on Energy and Commerce advanced multiple child safety bills in late 2025. Whether these reach the House floor for votes remains uncertain.

State-level legislation continues advancing. More than a dozen states are considering various approaches: age verification requirements, time limits, parental consent mandates, and algorithmic feed restrictions.

Privacy advocates argue that age verification systems required by these laws create surveillance infrastructure and violate free speech protections.

The central tension remains unresolved: whether government should mandate age restrictions when research shows potential harm, or whether parents should retain decision-making authority even when most choose to allow early access.