Türkiye finalizes draft law to require ID verification for social media access

The Turkish government says social media companies have agreed to a move that seeks to require identity verification for users of their platforms, and the draft legislation is complete.

Justice Minister Akin Gürlek said on Wednesday that work has been finalized on the draft text that aims to amend the Law on Regulation of Publications on the Internet and Combating Crimes Committed by Means of Such Publication, commonly known as Law No. 5651 of May 2007, writes Daily Sabah. The document has already been tabled for Cabinet approval. Previous amendments to the law took place in 2014 and 2020.

According to Gürlek, the objective of the latest amendment is to further sanitize the country’s social media space, enhance digital safety and trust, and ensure that people do not operate anonymously on social media platforms that have more than one million daily users in the country. Some of the platforms that fall within that category include X, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook. The idea was first proposed in February.

The minister noted that identity verification will be done using the digital government platform e-Devlet, a move that is inspired largely by what he described as “digital chaos” and the growing risks brought about by high-speed changes in digital technology. The legislation is also expected to contribute to curbing the proliferation of social media bots and parody accounts.

Gürlek said because some citizens use social media spaces anonymously, there has been a growing spate of vices such as cyberbullying, online identity fraud, disinformation, hate speech, and unauthorized betting practices.

Amid concerns about freedoms and privacy issues, the government has assured that the identity verification process will be secure and privacy-preserving. It says personal data will not be transferred to social media platforms, but will instead be kept by the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK).

Per the government, the draft legislation reflects the views of a broad spectrum of stakeholders who were consulted in the process of its drafting.

The government has stated that the new regulatory framework will be implemented in a phased manner over a period of nine months. Platforms that fail to comply with provisions of the law, once it goes into force, would face administrative and financial fines that could go up to three percent of their global turnover figures.

After the regulation and other technical aspects have been put in place, the next phase of the move will require companies to build the necessary platforms within a period of three months, after which the integration process will begin to allow existing accounts to complete identity verification. Once this is done, enforcement will start.

The move in Türkiye is in tandem with a current trend around the world regarding social media regulation.

The EU just launched a “technically read” version of its age verification app blueprint. Recently in Gabon, a regulatory framework instituting age assurance for social media and other digital platforms was gazetted. Nigeria is considering a similar move.

Article Topics

age verification  |  digital identity  |  e-Devlet Kapısı  |  identity verification  |  social media  |  Turkiye