Better Internet for Kids

In 2022, the Commission proposed a list of digital rights and principles, so daily online life for everyone in the EU is better and safer. They say that people should be free to make their choices online and participate in online discussions and other activities. The internet should become a safer and more secure place, especially for children.

In June 2021 the Commission adopted a proposal for a European Digital Identity. EU citizens and residents should have a right to a European Digital Identity wallet that is safe, free, convenient to use, and protects personal data. This would apply to children according to national law, and also to businesses. The wallet will allow a child e.g. to prove his or her age without revealing other personal data. It gives users control over what data they want to share about themselves, and with whom.

The Federal Act against Unfair Competition (UWG) is one of the legal frameworks regulating influencer-based marketing in Austria.
(Source: BIK Policy Monitor 2024).

Entities responsible for the implementation:
Federal Chancellery Republic of Austria/Bundeskanzleramt Österreich

The Federal Youth Funding allocates funding for three key priority areas: competencies and qualifications, intergenerational dialogue, and well-being and quality of life.  
(Source: Website).

Entities responsible for implementation:
Federal Chancellery Republic of Austria, Department of Youth Policy/Bundeskanzleramt Österreich, Abteilung Jugendpolitik

The Federal Youth Representation Act (B-JVG), which was put into force in 2001, concerns the participation of children and young people in decision-making processes in the country. It guarantees by law that their voices and opinions are heard.
(Source: Website).

Entities responsible for implementation: Federal Chancellery Republic of Austria/Bundeskanzleramt Österreich.

The Framework Decision aims to guarantee that major forms of racism and xenophobia are punishable as crimes in the EU. In particular, Member States are obliged to make it a crime to publicly provoke violence or hate against a person or group of persons because of their race, colour, religion, descent or national or ethnic origin (hate speech). The Framework Decision also makes courts consider any racist and xenophobic motive when they decide about the punishment (hate crime).

Children can be the target of hate speech or hate crimes, both on-line and off-line.

Futura is the educational branch of the Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), setting six reforms and ten plans to invest in a new educational system that includes digital skills and guarantees the right to education. The measures relate, in fact, to the most strategic aspects of education: the reorganization of the school system, the training of staff, recruitment procedures, the guidance system, the reorganization of technical and professional institutes and Higher Technical Institutes (ITS).

The GDPR says that children’s personal data need specific protection, as children may be less aware of their rights, and of what can happen if a company uses their personal data, especially for advertising or proposing content. Information about data processing should be clear and easy for a child to understand. Everyone has the right to be forgotten, under certain conditions. That means a user can ask a company to remove his/her personal data, especially when if (s)he agreed to this as a child.

This law means that non-food products sold in the EU must be safe. Countries can quickly alert each other about dangerous products.

In 2021, the European Commission proposed an update to strengthen existing rules. The proposal mentions the risks of products not made for children but that look like something appealing to children or meant for children – like sweets or toys. Safety would also apply to products based on new technologies like Artificial Intelligence that can affect people’s mental health and children’s healthy development.

The Global Strategy on Minors, Digital Health and Privacy (January 29, 2024) presents the Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD) priority lines of action to promote the effective protection of children and adolescents on the Internet. The strategy includes collaboration with national and international organizations competent in the matter. It contains 10 priority actions and 35 measures grouped into three axes: regulatory collaboration, reinforcement to guarantee the rights of children and adolescents and the exercise of investigative and sanctioning powers.