France may take further steps to prevent minors from accessing social media platforms. As its government advances a proposed ban on social media use for anyone under the age of 15, some leaders are already looking to add more restrictions. During a APPEARANCE in the public broadcasting service Franceinfo, Minister Delegate for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Affairs Anne Le Hénanff said that VPNs will be the next target.

“If (this legislation) allows us to protect the majority of children, we will continue. And VPNs are the next topic on my list,” he SAYS.

A virtual private network could allow French citizens younger than 15 to get around the ban on social media. We have already seen the VPN experience a popularity increase in the UK last year after similar laws on ageist content were passed. However, a VPN also offers benefits for online privacy, and the introduction of age verification requirements where your personal data must be submitted negates much of the appeal of these services.

France’s social media ban is still a work in progress. National Assembly of France voted in favor of the bans last week with a result of 116-23, which continues it for discussion in the Senate of the country. While that one comment doesn’t mean France will actually ban VPNs for any demographic, it points in the direction some of the country’s leaders want. Critics responded to Le Hénanff’s statements with concern that these attempts at protective measures were moving in an authoritarian direction.

France’s actions echo several other legislative pushes around the world aimed at reducing children and teenagers’ access to social media and other potentially sensitive online content. Seen in the US 25 laws at the state level for age verification introduced in the last two years, which has created a new set of concerns about the privacy and personal data of users, especially when there is no attempt to standardize how that information is collected or protected. When data breaches at large corporations are so common, it’s hard to believe that individual sites and services that suddenly need to establish an age verification process aren’t an easy target for hacks.