Social media ban risks pushing children into darker corners where predators thrive
The Breck Foundation spends most days speaking to young people, parents, and teachers about online safety, and almost every day brings a new concerning story: a child groomed, exploited, coerced, or exposed to harmful content online.
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The instinctive response is understandable: remove the danger. Ban the apps. Ban the phones. Ban social media altogether.
It feels bold and decisive. But a social media ban is not the answer.
The truth is that online harms are not caused by a particular app, platform, or device. They are driven by manipulation, secrecy, misplaced trust, and a lack of awareness. And those risks do not disappear when something is banned, they simply move.
At Breck Foundation, our work is rooted in this reality. We see, time and again, that online grooming is rarely the result of a single platform, app, or device. It occurs when predators exploit young people’s curiosity, trust, and isolation, often in digital environments that adults do not fully understand and are not sufficiently equipped to challenge. Banning social media will not address these underlying dynamics.
It’s questionable whether the systems are robust enough to adequately enforce such a ban, and it is naïve to think digitally savvy generations will not find workarounds. Children do not stop being curious, social, or vulnerable because something is prohibited. That is why we must work more closely with young people on solutions, because shutting them out does not shield them, it leaves them navigating dangers alone. Risks become hidden rather than managed.
This matters more than ever when online grooming of children is already at record levels. Predators follow children wherever oversight is weakest and understanding is lowest. A ban risks pushing young people into darker, less regulated corners of the internet, precisely where predators thrive.
But doing nothing is also not an option. The Government should ensure that existing laws on personalised devices are properly enforced and accelerate efforts to strengthen the Online Safety Act. Platforms should be obligated to implement effective age assurance systems that rigorously enforce minimum age based on the platform’s design, features and associated risks.
Most urgently, we need a fundamental reset of what we expect from social media companies. A ban for under-16s risks allowing these companies to wash their hands of responsibility of protecting children altogether, providing them with the excuse to say children “shouldn’t have been there,” even though we know many inevitably still will be.
Stricter regulation must compel social media companies to move away from addictive design and put the safety of children at the centre of their products if they want to operate in the UK.
In addition, it is equally important that children have access to comprehensive education on online safety. Understanding and recognising online dangers like grooming empowers them to respond effectively and navigate the digital world safely.
If we are serious about protecting children online, we must look beyond bans and start addressing the systems and behaviours that are putting them at risk in the first place.
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Erica Thornton is CEO of Breck Foundation, a leading UK charity empowering children and young people to reclaim the internet, with a focus on online safety, grooming and exploitation.
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