What is the logic/reason behind most sites only allowing users from 13 and upwards to join?

maturity…they wanna make sure that the people who join are mature enough to handle whatevers on that particular site. they dont want kids….

But a lot of people from 16 and under (not all) are very immature. Why not wait until people are the legal age of 18?

I guess it’s similar to the reason for 13+ video games and movies. The content in the website may not be appropriate for kids under the age of 13. Such as vulgar language, sexual content, etc…

It could be because of the content that might not be appropriate for younger people, but also because of maturity, like being mature enough to say no to strangers that invite you to visit them somewhere.

Its actually the law. Social networking sites do not have a choice in what age they allow to join the site, they must be over 13 legally. I agree with the law though, social networking sites can be dangerous for younger children to are very easily lied too and convinced of things and then taken advantage off. Would you want your 9 year old on facebook getting hit on by old men and convinced to tell them where they live? Its thought that by 13 a teen should atleast be smart enough to be weary of giving out personal information, also its the age a person is considered a teen and no longer a child.

The law. Under 13 year olds have to get parental permission and that is hard to get evidence of.

It’s not about what’s appropriate or safe - it’s because it’s illegal to take personal information from anyone under the age of 13.