Child safety online Archives | Page 8 of 81

Texas lawsuit targets Netflix data practices

The Attorney General of Texas has filed a lawsuit against Netflix, alleging the company unlawfully collected user data without consent. The case claims the platform tracked extensive behavioural information from both adults and children while presenting itself as privacy-conscious.

According to the lawsuit, Netflix allegedly logged viewing habits, device usage and other interactions, turning user activity into monetised data. The lawsuit further claims that this data was shared with brokers and advertising technology firms to build detailed consumer profiles.

The Attorney General also argues that Netflix designed features to increase engagement, including autoplay, which allegedly encouraged prolonged viewing, particularly among younger users. These practices allegedly contradict the platform’s public messaging about being ad-free and family-friendly.

Texas’s complaint quoted a statement from Netflix co-founder and Chairman Reed Hastings, who allegedly said the company did not collect user data. He sought to distinguish Netflix’s approach from other major technology platforms with regard to data collection.

The Attorney General also claims that Netflix’s alleged surveillance violates the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. The legal action seeks to halt the alleged data practices, introduce stricter controls, such as disabling autoplay for children, and impose penalties under consumer protection law, including civil fines of $ 10,000 per violation. The case highlights ongoing scrutiny of data practices by major technology platforms in the USA.

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Child safety concerns dominate Europe’s digital agenda

A growing majority of Europeans believe stronger online protections for children and young people should remain a top policy priority, according to new findings from the Special Eurobarometer on the Digital Decade.

The European Commission said 92% of Europeans consider further action to protect children and young people online a top priority, reflecting sustained concern over the impact of digital platforms on younger users.

Mental health risks linked to social media ranked among the biggest concerns, with 93% of respondents calling for stronger protections. Cyberbullying, online harassment, and better age-restriction mechanisms for inappropriate content were also highlighted by 92% of respondents.

Concerns over AI and online manipulation also remain high. The survey found that 39% of respondents cited privacy or data protection as a barrier to using AI, followed by accuracy or incorrect information at 36% and ethical issues or misuse of generative AI tools at 32%.

Around 87% of Europeans agreed that online manipulation, including disinformation, foreign interference, AI-generated content and deepfakes, poses a threat to democratic processes. Another 80% said AI development should be carefully regulated to ensure safety, even if oversight places constraints on developers.

The findings also show continuing concern over online platforms. Europeans reported being personally affected by fake news and disinformation, misuse of personal data and insufficient protections for minors, with concerns over fake news and child protection showing the sharpest increases since 2024.

Why does it matter?

The findings show that public concern over digital technologies in Europe is increasingly centred on safety, rights and accountability, particularly for children and young people. They also suggest that trust in platforms and AI systems will depend not only on innovation and access, but also on visible safeguards against manipulation, harmful content, privacy risks, and weak protections for minors.

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UK’s Ofcom prioritises child protection and AI moderation under Online Safety Act

The UK’s Ofcom has outlined its main online safety priorities for 2026–27, signalling tougher oversight of digital platforms under the UK’s Online Safety Act. The regulator said it will continue focusing heavily on child protection while expanding enforcement efforts against illegal hate speech, terrorism-related material, intimate image abuse, and AI-generated harms.

The regulator confirmed that more than 100,000 online services now fall within the scope of the legislation, creating major compliance and enforcement challenges. Ofcom said it will continue investigating platforms that fail to prevent harmful or illegal content, while also preparing new rules linked to additional UK legislation covering cyberflashing, non-consensual intimate imagery, and generative AI services.

Ofcom stated that major online platforms have already introduced broader age verification measures under regulatory pressure. Services including gaming, dating, social media, and pornography platforms have implemented stronger age checks and child safety protections.

Furthermore, the regulator said it will expand supervision of large technology companies and publish updated safety codes later this year, including guidance on AI-powered moderation systems.

According to Ofcom, future compliance work will increasingly focus on the effectiveness of platform moderation systems rather than relying solely on reactive content removal. The regulator also plans to strengthen protections for women and girls online through new technical standards designed to block the spread of non-consensual intimate images and sexual deepfakes at scale.

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FTC guidance sets out platform duties under Take It Down Act

The US Federal Trade Commission has issued guidance for online platforms on compliance with Section 3 of the Take It Down Act, which takes effect on 19 May 2026 and requires covered platforms to remove non-consensual intimate photos or videos within 48 hours of receiving a valid request.

The FTC says the law applies to a broad range of online platforms, including websites, apps, social media, messaging, image and video sharing, and gaming services. Platforms may fall under the law if they primarily provide a forum for user-generated content or regularly publish, curate, host, or furnish intimate content shared without consent.

Covered platforms must provide clear and conspicuous plain-language information about how people can submit removal requests for intimate photos or videos shared without consent. The FTC says platforms should make the process easy to use, including for people who do not have an account on the service.

The law also covers ‘digital forgeries’, including intimate images that were digitally created or altered using software, apps, or AI. Platforms that receive a valid request must remove the reported content and make reasonable efforts to locate and remove known identical copies within 48 hours.

The FTC also encourages platforms to help prevent removed images from spreading further, including through hashing technology and, where appropriate, by sharing hashes with services such as the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s Take It Down service or StopNCII.org.

Violations of the Take It Down Act will be enforced by the FTC and treated as violations of an FTC rule. The agency says platforms that breach the law may face civil penalties of $53,088 per violation.

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Canada issues age assurance guidance

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada has issued guidance on how organisations should assess and implement age assurance tools for websites and online services.

The OPC states that age assurance should only be used where there is a clear legal requirement or a demonstrable risk of harm to children. It emphasises that organisations must evaluate whether alternative, less intrusive measures could address these risks before adopting such systems.

The guidance highlights that any age assurance approach, including those that use AI, must be proportionate, limit personal data collection, and operate in a privacy-protective manner. It also warns against using collected data for other purposes or linking user activity across sessions.

The OPC adds that organisations must provide user choice with respect to the type of personal information they would prefer to use in an age-assurance process, provide appeal mechanisms, and minimise repeated verification. The framework aims to balance child protection with privacy rights, with the guidance applying to online services in Canada.

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Ireland and the EU intensify DSA pressure on Meta

Coimisiún na Meán, the media regulator of Ireland, has launched two formal investigations into Meta over the design of recommender systems on Facebook and Instagram under the Digital Services Act. The investigations focus on whether users are prevented from choosing recommendation feeds that are not based on the profiling of their personal data.

Coimisiún na Meán said concerns emerged following platform supervision reviews and complaints linked to potential ‘dark patterns’ and deceptive interface designs. Regulators are examining whether users can easily access and modify non-profiled recommendation feeds as required under Article 27 of the DSA, alongside whether interface designs may improperly influence user choices under Article 25.

John Evans, Digital Services Commissioner at Coimisiún na Meán, said recommender systems can repeatedly push harmful material into user feeds, particularly affecting children and younger users. The regulator also warned that Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) must ensure users can exercise their rights under the DSA without manipulation or unnecessary barriers.

EU investigates Meta over under-13 access on Instagram and Facebook

At the same time, the European Commission has preliminarily found Meta in potential breach of the DSA over failures to adequately prevent children under 13 from accessing Instagram and Facebook. Regulators said Meta’s age verification and reporting systems may be ineffective, while the company’s risk assessments allegedly failed to properly address harms faced by underage users.

Why does it matter?

These investigations are critical because they could shape how the DSA is enforced across Europe, particularly in cases involving children and algorithmic recommendation systems. If regulators conclude that Meta failed to properly protect minors or used manipulative interface designs that discouraged users from choosing non-profiled feeds, the case may set a wider precedent for how large online platforms handle age assurance, user consent, privacy protections, and recommender system transparency under EU law.

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Online Safety Act brings progress, but UK children still face harm online

A new report from Internet Matters suggests the UK’s Online Safety Act has introduced more visible safety measures for children, but has not yet delivered the step change needed to make their online lives meaningfully safer. Drawing on surveys and focus groups with children and parents, the report presents an early view of how the law is affecting families in practice.

The findings point to some clear signs of progress. Parents and children report seeing more safety features, including improved reporting tools, content filters, restrictions on certain functions, and stronger parental controls. Many children also say the content they encounter online is becoming more age-appropriate.

At the same time, the report argues that important weaknesses remain. Children continue to encounter harmful content at high rates, while age verification is widely seen as easy to bypass. Internet Matters also says that some of the issues families care most about, including excessive screen time and the risks linked to AI-generated content, are still not adequately addressed under the current framework.

The report concludes that parents are still carrying too much of the burden of keeping children safe online. It calls for stronger enforcement, more effective age assurance, tighter limits on harmful features, and a broader safety-by-design approach to digital services used by children in the UK.

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China closes consultation on digital virtual human services

The Cyberspace Administration of China has closed its public consultation on the draft Administrative Measures for Digital Virtual Human Information Services, which set out proposed rules for digital virtual human services provided to the public in China.

The notice states that the consultation opened in April 2026 and that comments were accepted until 6 May 2026. According to the draft, the measures would apply to internet information services delivered to the public within China through digital virtual humans.

The draft says providers and users must process data for lawful purposes and within a lawful scope, use data from legal sources, and fulfil their data security responsibilities. It also requires technical and other necessary measures to protect data storage and transmission and to prevent leaks or improper use.

The text further requires digital virtual human service providers and users to establish security risk monitoring, warning, emergency response, anti-addiction mechanisms, and stronger content-direction management, while also retaining logs. Providers whose services have public opinion attributes or social mobilisation capacity would also be required to complete algorithm filing procedures and security assessments in line with existing national rules.

Beyond cybersecurity and data protection, the draft includes provisions on personal information, personality rights, intellectual property, content controls, labelling requirements, and protections for minors. It defines digital virtual humans as virtual figures in the non-physical world that simulate human appearance and may have voice, behaviour, interaction abilities, or personality traits, using graphics, digital image processing, or AI technologies.

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New Meta age assurance system aims to prevent underage access

Meta has expanded its use of AI to strengthen age assurance and improve enforcement of underage account policies across its platforms. The systems are designed to detect users under 13 for removal and to place suspected teens into protected Teen Account settings on Instagram and Facebook in regions including the EU, Brazil, and the US.

The technology analyses a range of signals, including profile information, user activity, and other contextual indicators, to estimate age more accurately. Automated systems are also being used to support faster and more consistent review of reports related to underage use.

Visual analysis has also become part of Meta’s broader detection approach, with the company saying its systems look for general age-related indicators rather than attempting to identify specific individuals. Reporting tools have been simplified, and AI-assisted moderation is being used to improve the speed and reliability of enforcement decisions.

Alongside these enforcement measures, Meta is increasing parental engagement through notifications and guidance to encourage more accurate age reporting and safer online behaviour. The wider effort reflects growing pressure on platforms to move beyond self-declared age checks and to build stronger systems to protect younger users.

Why does it matter?

The significance of the move lies in the fact that age assurance is becoming a core platform governance issue rather than a secondary moderation tool. Meta is trying to show that large social platforms can use AI not only to recommend or personalise content, but also to enforce minimum age rules at scale. That matters because regulators are increasingly questioning whether self-declared age data is enough to protect minors online. It also points to a broader shift in which platforms are expected to combine safety obligations, automated detection, and parental tools into a more active system of child protection.

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MEPs consider stronger EU measures on cyberbullying and online harassment

The European Parliament has voted on a resolution on targeted criminal provisions and platform responsibility to address cyberbullying and online harassment, following a debate with the Commission.

The debate focused on whether EU law should go further in addressing harmful online behaviour, including through targeted criminal provisions and stronger obligations for platforms. Parliament’s plenary briefing said MEPs were expected to press the Commission on what more can be done beyond existing Digital Services Act protections.

Draft resolution texts tabled in Parliament say MEPs want the Commission to consider making cyberbullying a criminal offence under EU law and to address legal gaps in the current framework.

The vote followed the Commission’s recent action plan against cyberbullying, which Parliament said is built around a support app, coordination of national approaches, and the promotion of safer digital practices.

The debate also comes after MEPs heard testimony earlier this year from Jackie Fox, whose daughter Coco’s case led to Ireland’s Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020, known as Coco’s Law. Parliament’s briefing notes that while EU initiatives address parts of the issue, there is still no EU-wide anti-online bullying law or commonly agreed definition at the European or international level.

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