April 29, 2026 The Greek government is advancing a plan to require identity verification on social media accounts in an effort to curb online abuse and misinformation. The proposal would ensure that every account is tied to a real person, even if pseudonyms remain visible, marking a significant shift in how online identity is managed.
Digital governance minister Dimitris Papastergiou said the initiative is aimed at addressing rising toxicity online, arguing that anonymity enables harassment and disinformation without accountability.
“The major problem behind anonymity is toxicity – anyone, especially on social media, can smear an individual and carry out character assassination without facing any consequences,” he said.
The plan is being handled at senior levels of government under Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and comes ahead of national elections expected in early 2027. Officials say political discourse online has increasingly involved coordinated harassment, threats and the spread of false information, often from accounts that cannot be traced to real individuals.
Papastergiou said the government is exploring mechanisms to require platforms to verify user identities, noting that “there are many technical ways to achieve this.” Deputy Prime Minister Pavlos Marinakis clarified that pseudonyms would not necessarily be eliminated, but each account would need to correspond to a verified individual behind the scenes.
The proposal raises implementation challenges. Governments would likely need cooperation from major platforms, which rely on large volumes of user accounts, including anonymous and duplicate profiles, as part of their business models.
Papastergiou acknowledged this tension, stating that while platforms may resist such changes, the government’s priority is “safeguarding democracy and fostering a public sphere free from toxicity.”
Critics point to legal and technical hurdles, particularly within the European Union’s regulatory framework. Digital rights advocates have long warned that restricting anonymity could have implications for freedom of expression, especially for users who rely on anonymity for safety or political speech. Some experts suggest that any meaningful enforcement would require coordination at the EU level rather than a single-country approach.
