The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called Friday for immediate action to protect children online, releasing a set of guidelines aimed at improving safety on digital platforms.
Volker Turk issued a statement demanding that child online safety be made a "priority" by both governments and technology companies. "Enhancing protection of children online is an urgent priority," he said. The call comes as countries around the world test age-based bans and stricter regulations, and as pressure grows on technology companies to act, according to Al Jazeera.
The guidelines released alongside Turk's statement include measures such as age verification safeguards, mandatory child rights impact assessments, and involving children themselves in shaping regulatory responses. Turk said the problem requires broad action beyond simply limiting who can access platforms.
"We need much wider action – by governments and companies – to ensure that the platforms themselves are made safer by design, that data is protected, that those responsible for harm can be held to account, and that children's rights and needs are fully respected throughout," Turk said.
He also warned that age verification alone carries risks. "Whatever regulations are adopted, it is essential to avoid inadvertently causing further harms. For example, age verification done wrong can both fail at its goal and endanger the privacy of both kids and adults," he said. Turk added that regulations focused only on user age risk leaving unchanged the design choices and algorithmic practices that make platforms unsafe in the first place.
The statement follows a wave of legislation around the world. Australia passed a law in December 2025 restricting social media access for children under 16. Indonesia and Malaysia have since introduced similar age-based restrictions. Austria announced plans in late March to ban social media for children under 14, with draft legislation expected to be finalized by June. Denmark and France are set to ban social media for children under 15. Spain's prime minister announced in early February a planned ban for children under 16, and the United Kingdom is weighing similar restrictions.
Some child safety experts have said age bans alone do not go far enough and have called instead for tighter regulation requiring platforms to change how they are built and how their algorithms operate.
