South Africa, Oct. 20 -- Australia was the first to announce restrictions on people under 16 having a social media account. New Zealand may soon follow, and Denmark's prime minister recently declared her country would ban social media for under-15s, accusing mobile phones and social networks of "stealing our children's childhood".

The moves are part of a growing international trend: the United Kingdom, France, Norway, Pakistan and the United States are now considering or implementing similar restrictions, often requiring parental consent or digital ID verification.

At first glance, these policies appear to be about protecting young people from mental health harm, explicit content and addictive design. But beneath the language of safety ...