Children could be banned from eBay and Vinted
The Government is seriously considering banning children from online sales platforms
The Government is seriously considering banning children from online sales platforms like eBay and Vinted, Lisa Nandy has said.
The Culture Secretary is said to be considering extending the social media band for under-16s to the marketplaces amid fears their messaging functions could allow strangers to groom children.
Asked on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg if she would extend the ban to the websites, Ms Nandy said: “We are looking seriously at doing so in order to keep children safe.”
It comes after the Sunday Times reported the Culture Secretary is mulling over the move.
She will later this year publish details of which social media platforms will be banned from having users under 16 years old.
This is expected to include Facebook, Instagram and X, but the Sunday Times reported Ms Nandy could go further in the spring and extend the ban to marketplaces.
Vinted, Depop, eBay and Facebook Marketplace are among those which could face the ban, according to the newspaper.
Rani Govender, head of child safety online at the NSPCC, said the Culture Secretary was “right to consider a wider range of platforms”.
She added: “Vinted and eBay already have a minimum age of 18, so the real question is how the Government and Ofcom will ensure highly effective age checks are implemented and enforced to stop children accessing them in the first place.”
Published: by Radio NewsHub