The Senate has advanced a bill that would hit social media platforms with fines of ₱5 million to ₱20 million per violation if they fail to keep users below 18 off covered services, with an additional ₱100,000 penalty for every day of continued noncompliance.
Senate Bill No. 2424, or the proposed Child Online Safety and Protection Act, was approved on second reading on October 1. Sponsored by Sen. Robin Padilla, the measure would require age-restricted social media platforms to stop minors from accessing or creating accounts and to establish systems capable of verifying users’ ages.
The bill would also require parental safety tools and would apply to international platforms serving users in the Philippines. Foreign social media companies covered by the measure would have to designate a representative in the country and cooperate with Philippine authorities.
The Department of Information and Communications Technology would oversee compliance if the bill becomes law. Its functions would include investigating violations, imposing fines, handling reporting mechanisms and updating age-assurance standards.
The proposed penalties extend beyond monetary sanctions. The DICT could also seek restrictions against digital services that fail to enforce minimum-age requirements, maintain age-verification systems or address harmful content.
Parents could also face penalties if they knowingly help minors bypass the restrictions. The bill provides for fines of up to ₱50,000, possible community service and mandatory attendance in digital parenting and child safety programs.
The restrictions would not cover email services, private messaging platforms, educational services, news platforms, professional collaboration tools and online games that are not primarily used for social networking.
The Senate measure still needs approval on third reading. It would then have to be reconciled with the House version, which proposes a full social media ban for children below 13 while placing restrictions on those aged 13 to 18. A final reconciled bill would still need congressional ratification and the President’s signature before becoming law.
