Mexico to force Meta, TikTok, and X to better protect minors on platform
Mexico will require the digital platforms to protect minors from violent and sexual content.
Key points
- Mexico's president signed a decree requiring platforms to shield minors from harmful content.
- Platforms have one month to comply with the new rules.
- The decree follows a deadly school attack in Coahuila in early October.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum signed a presidential decree requiring digital platforms, including TikTok, Meta and X, to protect children from violent, sexual and other harmful content online. The decree says platforms must restrict exposure to content involving violence, harassment or sexual abuse, and immediately remove risky material from minors' profiles.
Sheinbaum said on Wednesday the government would back legislation to penalise companies that fail to implement the decree. "If no progress is made, it would become a law," she told a news conference on Tuesday.
What officials said
Sheinbaum said the goal is for digital platforms to take on some responsibility and refrain from spreading content related to criminal acts or violent behaviour. Government adviser Luisa Maria Alcalde said platforms will have one month to comply.
Officials said they had already discussed the matter with representatives of Meta, Microsoft, Apple, TikTok, Google, X and Huawei.
If no progress is made, it would become a law.
— Claudia Sheinbaum
Context and global push
The decree comes after an attack by two 18-year-olds on their former high school in the northern state of Coahuila in early October that killed one and wounded three others.
Last August, Meta agreed to pay an $18bn settlement in a major US federal case accusing it of endangering children, and was forced to introduce new safety features on Instagram and Facebook. The lawsuit alleged Meta violated the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act by collecting, retaining and using personal data from children under 13 without proper parental consent.
Mexico's move follows a broader global push to protect minors online, with governments in Europe and Australia tightening oversight and US states pursuing child-safety measures. Brazil has also moved to strengthen protections for children online, raising questions over how to protect minors while safeguarding privacy and freedom of expression.
