Better Internet for Kids

Here, we take an in-depth look at the latest monitoring information for Germany.

According to the Digital Decade 2025: Country reports, Germany continues to lead in advanced digital technologies, though it lags behind in providing digital public services, high-capacity network coverage and has somewhat lower digital skills. Germany also shows a high level of ambition in its contribution to the Digital Decade, with nine targets aligned with the EU 20230 targets. 

According to the State of the Digital Decade Eurobarometer 2025, 74% of German citizens consider that the digitalisation of daily public and private services is making their lives easier. Concerning the action of the public authorities, 88% consider it important to counter and mitigate the issue of fake news and disinformation online, and regarding minors’ protection, 95% consider it important to address the negative impact of social media on children’s mental health. 

Under the federal system, there is more than one ministry responsible for children’s online safety. Responsibility for youth media protection is shared between federal and Länder authorities. The Federal Ministry for Education, Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMBFSFJ) leads federal-level policies on protecting children. But there are also some policies initiated by the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection (BMJV), the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) and the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG). The work of all ministries responsible for children and families at the state level is coordinated by the Conference of Youth and Family Ministries of the Länder (Jugend- und Familienministerkonferenz der Länder – JFMK).

Read the full Policy monitor country profile for detailed information on recent national research studies in Germany.

Read the full 2026 edition of the Policy monitor report.[BON1] 

BIK policies

This concerns how national-level policies relevant to the BIK agenda are organised, managed, and supported by evidence and stakeholder input.

Policy frameworks

Policy frameworks describe the overarching goals that shape policies for a better internet for kids. 

In Germany:

• This topic is an important and emerging policy priority, partially covered in national/regional laws, regulations and policies. 
• There are separate, dedicated policies which address the topic of children and the digital environment (protection, empowerment, and participation).
• The BIK+ strategy is an important influence on policy development on children and the digital environment (that is, it informs and guides national policies even if they do not directly refer to BIK+).
• National/regional policies and policy documents explicitly recognise children's rights in the digital environment.

Policy design

Policy design asks whether evidence and research support BIK-related policies and whether systems are in place for monitoring and evaluating those policies.

In Germany:

• There is a regular (e.g., annual or bi-annual) nationally representative survey specifically focused on children’s digital activity, which informs national policies on BIK topics. 
• Regular (e.g., annual or bi-annual) surveys include measures of children’s experiences of risks, harms and digital well-being.
• Information is regularly gathered to inform policies on children and the digital environment. However, this relies primarily on third-party sources, and there are limited opportunities to commission new data on children's digital activity.
• Existing regular national research funding is available for research on children and the digital environment, but this is not explicitly specified.
• Policies undergo systematic and regular monitoring and evaluation to assess the effectiveness of actions in different contexts.

Policy governance

Policy governance examines how policies are coordinated at the governmental level, whether other implementation bodies are involved in their delivery and coordination.

In Germany:

• Policy development sits across different ministries with leadership officially distributed according to the area of specialisation.
• Coordination occurs across relevant departments and stakeholders through more informal arrangements. While lacking a centralised coordination body, this approach still facilitates reasonably effective collaboration and alignment of efforts.
• One or more programmes of action is/are underway supporting children’s online safety and participation in the digital environment. However, these lack accountabilities, such as defined timelines, assigned responsibilities or key performance indicators (KPIs).

Stakeholder involvement

Stakeholder involvement enquires how different stakeholders can participate in policy development.

In Germany:

• Stakeholders are involved through various existing groups or platforms across different government branches. While opportunities for engagement exist, they are not centrally coordinated, and stakeholder participation may vary in consistency or influence.
• The public is consulted during the development of new BIK policies. While engagement is structured and meaningful, it is event-driven and does not occur outside of major policy formulation efforts.
• Children are listened to directly in the policy development process (for example, through hearings, consultations, specific surveys) but are not formally involved in decision-making.

Read the full Policy monitor country profile for detailed information on recent national research studies in Germany.

Read the full 2026 edition of the Policy monitor report.[BON2] 

BIK+ actions

Pillar 1 – safe digital experiences

Safe digital experiences refer to actions taken to protect children from harmful and illegal online content, conduct, contact, and risks as young consumers and to improve their well-being online through a safe, age-appropriate digital environment created in a way that respects children’s best interests.

Table 1: Safe digital experiences – Germany

Pillar 2 – Digital empowerment

Digital empowerment involves actions that ensure all children, including those in vulnerable situations, acquire the necessary skills and competences to make sound choices and to express themselves safely and responsibly in the online environment.

Table 2: Digital empowerment – Germany

Pillar 3 – Active participation, respecting children’s rights

This includes actions that promote young people's active participation and respect for their rights through such activities as fostering innovative and creative safe digital experiences for young people and ensuring they have a say in policies governing the digital environment

Table 3: Active participation, respecting rights - Germany

Read the full Policy monitor country profile for detailed information on recent national research studies in Germany.

Read the full 2026 edition of the Policy monitor report.[BON3] 

BIK+ index 2026: Germany

The BIK+ index has been developed to provide an aggregated at-a-glance overview of the levels of implementation across the two dimensions, BIK policies and BIK+ actions, in Germany compared to the EU27+2 average. Values are shown in per cent.

Figure 1: BIK+ index 2026: Germany - EU27+2 average comparison

Please note, the data used in this page and the corresponding country profile was collected in January 2026.