France's parliament approved a social media ban for children under 15, with age verification requirements beginning January 2027. The post accurately reports the law but frames it as a surveillance threat, presenting privacy concerns as the primary story rather than child safety. Age verification does require some form of identity disclosure, which reduces anonymity. However, the framing that "the free web dies" omits important context: many democracies are moving toward age gates, and France is presenting this as harm reduction for minors rather than surveillance infrastructure. The details about exactly how age verification will work — the specific methods, timeline, and transition period — remain unclear in publicly available information. What's confirmed is that platforms must implement systems approved by French privacy regulators, but the precise mechanics of how all users will prove their age haven't been fully detailed yet. This matters because the specific methods chosen will actually determine how invasive the system is in practice. The core concern about privacy is legitimate, but it should be weighed against the stated goal of protecting children from social media harms — a tradeoff many democracies are actively grappling with.