Better Internet for Kids

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

Children in Spain are increasingly being considered in the design of policies related to their participation in the digital environment, including the work of the Experts Committee for the Protection of Minors in Digital Environments. The committee's working methodology includes the creation of various working groups covering key areas. One of these working groups is specifically dedicated to the ‘Participation of children,’ providing a structured approach to involve children in discussions and decisions concerning their digital environment.

BIK policies

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

Policy frameworks

Policy frameworks describe the overarching approach for a better internet, and establish the underlying goals, principles and guidelines that shape individual policies within this area.

In Spain:

• This topic is an important and emerging policy priority, with children’s online protection, digital empowerment, and digital participation partially covered in national/regional laws, regulations and policies.
• There are separate, dedicated policies that address children and the digital environment (protection, empowerment, and participation).
• The BIK+ strategy is very important in the national policy on children and the digital environment and is explicitly referenced in national policies.
• National/regional policies and policy documents explicitly recognise children's rights in the digital environment.

Read the full Policy monitor country profile for detailed information on key national policy frameworks in Spain.

Read the full 2025 edition of the Policy monitor report.

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.

• Surveys of children’s digital activities are undertaken, but only irregularly.
• Surveys of children’s experiences of risks, harms and digital well-being are undertaken on an ad-hoc and irregular basis.
• 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 national research funding is available for research on children and the digital environment, but this is not explicitly specified.
• Policies are monitored and evaluated, but not systematically.

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

Read the full 2025 edition of the Policy monitor report.

Policy governance

Policy governance examines how policies are coordinated at the governmental level, whether other implementation bodies are involved in their delivery, and whether structured mechanisms are available to guide their implementation. 

• One central body is formally mandated to lead and develop policies, guidelines, and programmes relating to children and the digital environment, if necessary, in consultation with other departments.
• Coordination happens more informally across the different departments and entities that contribute to government policies, guidelines, and programmes regarding children and the digital environment.
• There is a defined national action plan on children and the digital environment with accountabilities such as defined timelines, assigned responsibilities or key performance indicators (KPIs).

Read the full Policy monitor country profile for detailed information on key policy governance mechanisms in Spain.

Read the full 2025 edition of the Policy monitor report.

Stakeholder involvement

Stakeholder involvement enquires how different stakeholders can participate in policy development. Children’s involvement in policy-making is one such key issue. Additionally, international knowledge exchange about children's digital participation is also relevant to this topic.

• There is a designated multi-stakeholder forum in place which facilitates the involvement of all relevant stakeholder groups.
• Members of the public are consulted only when new policies are being developed.
• Children are actively involved in the design of policies related to their participation in the digital environment. There are specially designed structures in place for this purpose.

Read the full Policy monitor country profile for detailed information on crucial stakeholder involvement mechanisms in Spain.

Read the full 2025 edition of the Policy monitor report.

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.

Implementing EU laws

• The Ministry for Digital Transformation and Public Service has officially designated the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC), as Digital Services Coordinator (DSC) at the national level in accordance with the provisions of the Digital Services Act (DSA). The agency is expected to soon establish an action plan for the implementation of the Digital Services Act (DSA) in Spain.
• The CNMC is expected to play a role in monitoring and enforcing regulations related to harmful online content, including that which affects minors. In this regard, the draft organic law for the protection of minors in digital environments includes, among its additional provisions, the necessary changes to grant the CNMC the authority to remove online content harmful to children.

Harmful online content

• The legislative proposal for the protection of minors in digital environments includes, in its preamble, an approach to a classification of harmful content, based on the classification displayed on the SIC’s website. However, in relation to the implementation of the DSA, it is necessary to further develop this classification to ensure it comprehensively adapts to the evolving digital landscape while remaining aligned with the local context. This is one of the measures proposed by the Expert Committee in its recommendation report.
• There is no single, universally agreed-upon definition of ‘harmful online content’ in Spanish law, regulations, or policies. However, several legal frameworks address various aspects of it:
  • The Organic Law for the Protection of Children and Adolescents against Violence (LO 8/2021)(LOPIVI) (summary available in English) does not include a specific definition of ‘harmful online content.’ However, it does define what violence against minors is, including violence carried out through information and communication technologies, such as threats, insults and slander, exploitation, including sexual violence, corruption, child pornography, prostitution, bullying, sexual harassment, cyberbullying, unsolicited access to pornography, sexual extortion, and the public dissemination of private data, carried out through digital media.
  • The Organic Law on Protection of Personal Data and Guarantee of Digital Rights (LOPDGDD) prohibits processing personal data that incites violence, hatred, or discrimination.
  • The General Law on Audiovisual Communication (Law 13/2022) categorises certain types of content as "unsuitable for minors" and restricts access accordingly.

Harmful online conduct

• National/regional laws, regulations, or policies in place to protect children and young people from intimate image abuse are covered under Article 197.7 of the Spanish Penal Code. This provision criminalises the disclosure of intimate images without the consent of the individuals involved. It aims to protect individuals, including children and young people, from unauthorised private and sensitive content sharing. Offenders may face criminal charges, including fines and imprisonment, for violating this provision.
• There is no specific legislation on cyberbullying in Spain, but there are laws that address these behaviours through various legal provisions, and those responsible may be held accountable both criminally and under civil law.
  Article 173 of the Penal Code deals with the ‘offense against moral integrity.’ This article can be applied in cases of cyberbullying, often in conjunction with other criminal offenses such as assault, threats, coercion, defamation, or slander. Additionally, when cyberbullying occurs through electronic means, it may also involve computer crimes.

Age verification

• Spain is trying to enlarge the establishment of legal measures to enforce age verification and protect minors from accessing adult or restricted online content. The General Law for Audiovisual Communication (LGCA) mandates that providers of audiovisual content and video-sharing platforms implement effective mechanisms to prevent minors from accessing harmful content. This includes requiring age verification systems to ensure compliance with content restrictions.  In addition, the proposed Law on the Protection of Minors in Digital Environments requires companies to implement reliable age verification systems to restrict minors' access to certain content or services.
• The AEPD has issued guidelines on age verification, setting out principles to balance age-gating with data protection and user privacy.
• The legislative proposal for the protection of minors in digital environments includes a specific requirement that any age verification and control system implemented by video-sharing service providers, as mandated by Article 89 of Law 13/2022, complies with the European digital identity framework (eIDAS2) to ensure harmonised processing across EU member states. Spain is also part of the European task force leading pilot projects on age verification tools to protect minors from adult content online. The tool being developed is a mobile application based on the credential model of eIDAS2. This application aligns with the technical specifications of the European Digital Identity Wallet. 

Commercial content

• In Spain, the General Advertising Law (Ley General de Publicidad) and the Unfair Competition and Advertising Act (Ley de Competencia Desleal y Publicidad) provide some guidelines on truthful advertising and the protection of consumers from misleading practices.
• The Spanish Advertising Self-Regulation Code (Código de Conducta Publicitaria) also serves as a self-regulatory framework for the advertising industry. In addition, the Spanish Association of Advertisers (AEA) and the Association for Self-Regulation of Commercial Communication (AUTOCONTROL) developed a Code of Conduct for managing relationships with influencers.

Mental health and well-being

• The action against addictions and abuse related to digital services is part of the Mental Health Strategy of the National Health System and the 2022-2024 Mental Health Action Plan. This plan was approved by the Interterritorial Council of the National Health System in May 2022 and has since been updated for the 2022-2026 period. The Expert Committee report for the protection of minors in digital environments includes specific recommendations on this matter, including measures to improve the detection and intervention in schools and in primary health care and the proposal for the creation of a National Observatory on Mental Health.
  

Pillar 2 – digital empowerment

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

Supports for online safety education

• The curriculum for primary and secondary education includes the development of digital competencies, ranging from basic digital skills to critical understanding of online information and internet safety. Primary education focuses more on basic digital skills, online safety, and responsible technology use, while secondary education delves into critical thinking, digital citizenship, and more in-depth online safety skills. The autonomous communities have some autonomy to adapt and complement the national curriculum according to their specific needs.
• The Common Framework for Digital Teaching Competence (based on the European framework) outlines the skills and knowledge that teachers should possess to integrate technology into teaching effectively. This includes aspects related to online safety.
• There is also the Digital Competences Plan, a national initiative aimed at strengthening the population's digital skills as a whole. This plan addresses topics such as online safety and the promotion of responsible technology use.
• The National Institute of Educational Technologies and Teacher Training (INTEF), under the Ministry of Education, plays a key role in promoting the use of technology in education. It provides teachers diverse resources and training programs covering various topics, including online safety. INTEF collaborates with the Spanish Safer Internet Centre (IS4K), coordinated by INCIBE, to offer specialised training for teachers in cybersecurity and online safety. This collaboration involves the development of training modules, workshops, and other educational resources.
• The Ministry of Education offers online courses and resources covering various digital skills, including online safety topics such as responsible technology use, digital citizenship, and critical thinking. Some of these initiatives are conducted together with the Spanish SIC. The SIC provides workshops, webinars, and resources on online safety for diverse audiences, including families, adults, and teachers.

Digital literacy skills to empower young people

• The National Digital Competence Plan and the Education Law (summary available in English) both play important roles in fostering digital skills among minors, emphasising their critical capabilities and active participation.
• To further enhance digital education, Spain has launched initiatives such as the ‘Escuela 4.0’ programme within the Digital Competences Plan (Digital Spain 2026 Strategy), which focuses on computational thinking, programming, and robotics for both teachers and students from early childhood education through compulsory secondary education. This programme aims to reduce the digital divide and improve future employability by integrating digital skills into the classroom.
• Among measures to combat disinformation and foster children’s critical media literacy are the following:
  • IBERIFIER (Iberian Digital Media Observatory). Launched in 2021, IBERIFIER is a collaborative project involving over 20 partners from Spain and Portugal. It focuses on monitoring disinformation, conducting research, and promoting media literacy. The initiative offers training sessions for journalists, educators, and students, aiming to empower citizens against information disorders.
  • MediaWise's Teen Fact-Checking Network (TFCN). In collaboration with the Spanish fact-checking organisation Verificat, MediaWise introduced TFCN in Spain in 2024. This programme trains teenagers to identify and debunk misinformation on social media platforms, enhancing peer-to-peer education in media literacy.
  • Responsables en las Redes is a series of courses designed for upper primary school students, aimed at raising awareness about the importance of acting responsibly on social media and demanding the same level of responsibility from influencers. This project also includes the dissemination of information through periodic newsletters and the creation of educational capsules for teachers to use in the classroom, helping students work on specific aspects of social media responsibility.

Pillar 3 – active participation, respecting children’s rights

Active participation, respecting children’s rights, refers to actions which give children and young people a say in the digital environment, with more child-led activities to foster innovative and creative safe digital experiences.

Active participation

• The Youth Institute (Injuve) in Spain focuses on promoting youth engagement. The Injuve Youth Portal often serves as a platform providing information on youth opportunities, including events, campaigns, and initiatives related to civic participation and digital engagement.
• The Consejo de la Juventud de España (CJE) plays a role in representing and promoting the interests of young people in Spain. It often engages in initiatives related to youth participation, advocacy, and digital engagement.
• Platfaforma de Infancia, a non-governmental organisation focused on children's rights, operates a Youth Panel that actively engages young people in promoting online safety, in coordination with the Spanish SIC.

Supporting children’s rights

• The State Strategy for the Rights of Children and Adolescence (2023-2030) refers to the right of children and adolescents to participate in decisions that affect them, in the creation of safe spaces and to ask for help, learning to participate critically and actively in society. In September 2021, the State Council for the Participation of Children and Adolescents was created in line with the demand of the Committee on the Rights of the Child.
• The Observatory for Children's Rights in the Digital Environmentwill monitor and analyse the most widely used digital applications among teenagers to assess whether they uphold children's rights. As part of this initiative, groups of adolescents aged 14 to 17 will evaluate various apps such as Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and WhatsApp to determine whether the digital environment enables children and teenagers to fully exercise their rights.

Digital inclusion

• The Digital Agenda 2026 and the Digital Skills Plan are two key instruments that aim to stimulate the creation of digital content in Spain. These initiatives promote the development of digital skills among the population, support the production of high-quality digital content, and foster the participation of citizens in the digital economy.
• The Skills Upload Jr Challenge is a European competition that invites students, guided by a teacher, to develop solutions to everyday problems and use technology as a driver for positive impact in their communities. The 2024-2025 challenge focuses on ‘Bridging the Digital Divide: Promoting Inclusion Through Digital Technology,’ encouraging students to create solutions related to quality education (SDG 4), gender equality (SDG 5), and sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11).

Read the full Policy monitor country profile for some best practice examples from Spain.

Read the full 2025 edition of the Policy monitor report.

BIK+ index 2025: Spain

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 Spain compared to the EU27+2 average. Values are shown in per cent.

Please note, the data used in this page and the corresponding country profile was collected in February 2025.