5th Anniversary Joint Letter of General Comment No. 25 of the Committee on the Rights of the Child

On the 5th anniversary of General Comment No. 25 of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (“Committee”) entitled “Children’s rights in relation to the digital environment”, NCR along with other child protection organizations and experts, signed a joint letter calling on governments, regulators and legislators worldwide to hold businesses accountable for ensuring that technology that impacts children is rights-respecting and age-appropriate by design and by definition.

General comment No. 25 is unambiguous: this responsibility lies squarely with tech companies. The era for voluntary promises has passed. States must ensure businesses fulfil this duty, and companies must proactively identify and mitigate negative impacts upstream and embed privacy and safety by design.

Five years of implementing UNCRC General comment No. 25 have built a solid evidence base demonstrating that embedding age-appropriate design delivers concrete, measurable improvements to children’s experiences. The global frameworks are in place, and international best practices provide a blueprint for their implementation. What remains is the political will to act and deliver the digital world we promised children – one designed to protect and uplift them, not exploit them.

To that end, we urge States to fulfil their obligation to protect children’s rights in the digital world by:

• Explicitly protecting children as every individual below the age of 18, recognising their diversity and evolving capacities.
• Protecting children across all digital spaces they are likely to access or be impacted by.
• Making children’s best interests a primary consideration.
• Requiring age assurance to provide age-appropriate digital experiences.
• Mandating Child Rights Impact Assessments (CRIAs).
• Embedding privacy and safety by design and default.
• Prohibiting practices likely to contribute to known harms.
• Ensuring published terms, reporting mechanisms, and access to remedy are available, age-appropriate, and upheld.
• Mandating responsible business conduct, including meaningful child participation.
• Establishing effective enforcement mechanisms.

Read the attachment letter.