Evidence Library
Comprehensive data charts, academic papers, and statistical analysis on the impact of social media on children and adolescents.
Social Media Platforms Used by Young Users for Information on Political and Social Issues (EU27 average)
On average across the 27 European member states, Instagram was found to be the most commonly used platform (47%), followed by TikTok (39%) and YouTube (37%). Lower shares obtain information from Facebook (27%) and X (Twitter) (21%). WhatsApp is used for information on political and social issues by 16% of respondents. Other social media and platforms, including Snapchat (9%), Telegram (7%), Messenger (6%), LinkedIn (5%), Discord (4%) and Viber (2%), are mentioned less often by young people as sources of information on political and social issues.
Social Media Use Among 13-Year-Olds by Gender (2022)
Gender differences in problematic media use are highest. Overall, problematic social media use is higher for 13-year old girls than boys. The survey covers 44 countries and regions in Europe, central Asia and Canada.
Teaching digital skills NEW
This table illustrates the public support for incorporating digital literacy into formal education systems across Europe. The data reveal an overwhelming consensus across the European Union: 92% of respondents agree, to various extents, that digital skills should be taught to everyone in schools and universities. Notably, almost eight in ten (78%, combining "strongly" and "somewhat" agreeing to the statement) believe that these skills should be given the same institutional importance as reading, mathematics and science, and 76% agree, both "strongly" and "somewhat", that this instruction should begin at an early age.
The Detection of Illegal Content (2023–2024)
The staggering 218% increase in exchanged records is largely attributed to a high-volume surge identified by the SafeNet Bulgaria hotline, which accounted for 1.6 million records. Furthermore, the identification of 929,733 "New Records", a 35% increase, demonstrates that despite better tracking, nearly one million pieces of previously unseen abusive content entered the system in 2024 alone.
The percentage of parents reporting that their child aged 8 to 15 years no longer has an account on an age-restricted social media platform versus those who have retained it, by platform NEW
This table shows the proportion of Australian parents who reported whether their child aged 8 to 15 retained or lost their account on major social media platforms following the implementation of age-restriction legislation in Australia in December 2025. The data reveal a significant 'retention gap' across the digital landscape, with the majority of underage users (around 70%) managing to keep their accounts on popular platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok. An interesting trend emerges regarding platform-specific efficacy with significant differences between platforms.
The proportion of children using social media platforms who have seen violent content
This table shows the percentage of children using various social media and messaging platforms who have encountered violent content. Exposure is most prevalent on TikTok (44%) and X (43%), with nearly half of young users on these platforms reporting that they have seen such material. Around one-third of children encounter violent content on Facebook (33%), Snapchat (32%) and Instagram (31%). Moderate exposure levels are reported on community and video sites such as YouTube and Reddit (both 26%), with lower rates observed on private messaging services like WhatsApp (18%) and Discord (12%). The lowest reported exposure rates occur on specialised communication and streaming tools, including Twitch (6%) and iMessage (5%). The data indicates a clear hierarchy of risk, with public, algorithmically driven platforms showing significantly higher rates of exposure to violent content than private messaging apps.
The Role of Algorithmic Recommender Functions TikTok in Promoting Male Supremacist Influencers
Note: Stages represent the exposure progression, or cumulative viewing intervals, with Stage 5 occurring after approximately 400 videos or 2–3 hours of platform engagement. This table tracks the "rabbit hole" effect of social media algorithms by measuring the percentage of toxic/manosphere content recommended to experimental accounts over five progressive rounds of viewing. Conducted by Dublin City University (2024) in Ireland, the study utilised ten experimental accounts on blank smartphones to simulate the digital experiences of 16 and 18-year-old males on TikTok. The researchers tested two distinct user profiles: (1) generic (Gen) accounts seeking "gender-normative" interests like sports, gym content, and gaming; and manosphere-curious (MC) accounts actively seeking "manfluencer" content (e.g., Andrew Tate, anti-feminist topics). Researchers manually coded over 29 hours of video to identify the frequency of toxic or male-supremacist recommendations. The data demonstrates a rapid escalation in toxic recommendations across all profiles. While most accounts began with 0% toxic recommendations at stage 1, the algorithmic "recommender functions" quickly pivoted: by Round 5, the 16-year-old Generic account (Gen) saw the highest saturation, with 56% of all recommended content being classified as toxic; accounts that initially showed interest in manosphere content (MC) were targeted more aggressively in earlier rounds (e.g., the 16 MC accounts hit 36% toxicity by Round 3). Regardless of whether the initial intent was "generic" or "curious," all accounts were fed toxic content within the first 23–26 minutes of use, eventually resulting in a majority-toxic feed by the end of the experiment.
Top-5 Main Sources of Information for Young People (16 to 30 Years Old), 2024
This chart shows the top five main sources of information for young people aged 16 to 30. The data reveal a clear predominance of digital-first habits, with social media platforms (42%) such as Instagram and TikTok serving as the primary gateway to information for this demographic. This is followed closely by TV (39%), indicating that while digital platforms lead, traditional broadcast media still maintains a significant foothold in the daily lives of young adults. A significant trend emerges in the fragmentation of other sources: online press and news platforms (26%) trail social media by 16 percentage points, suggesting a shift away from direct news consumption toward algorithmically curated content. Friends, family, and colleagues (25%) remain a critical interpersonal source of information, while video platforms (23%) like YouTube solidify the importance of visual media as a primary information channel.
Trends in the Identification of Child Sexual Abuse Material (2020–2024)
The data reveals a record-breaking surge in the identification of CSAM, with 2024 figures surpassing the previous five-year peak by over 140%. The most alarming metric is the volume of confirmed illegal records, which jumped by 202% in a single year to reach 1.63 million.
Victim Demographics by Biological Sex
Female victims continued to be overwhelmingly represented, comprising 98.71% of reported cases, an increase from 94.60% in 2023. In contrast, the percentage of male victims has decreased significantly, dropping from 3.66% in 2023 to just 0.76% in 2024. Cases involving both sexes have also declined slightly, representing 0.53% of reports. These trends highlight the persistent disproportionate representation of female victims while reflecting a sharp decrease in male victims and a minor reduction in cases involving both sexes.