The digital Playground: Why kids need protection online
Today’s children are growing up in a world where the internet is as familiar as their local playground. From online classes and games to social media and streaming, digital platforms are woven into their daily routines. While digital access opens up a world of learning and creativity, it also brings significant risks—especially for young users who may not fully understand the implications of sharing personal information. Children are often targeted by online advertising, exposed to inappropriate content, and vulnerable to privacy breaches. Unlike adults, they may not recognize manipulative tactics designed to capture their attention or encourage them to share more data. This makes them easy targets for companies looking to profit from their online behavior. Unlike adults, kids often lack the maturity to understand the consequences of sharing personal information online. As a result, there’s a growing demand worldwide for laws that safeguard children’s privacy, ensure their safety, and empower parents to guide their online experiences.
Nebraska’s Law: Raising the Standard for Child Online Privacy
Privacy by Default: Online services must ensure the highest privacy settings for children by default. This means children’s data is protected automatically, without requiring parents or kids to adjust complicated settings.
Data Minimization: Companies can only collect and use the minimum amount of data needed for their service. Profiling, targeted advertising, and unnecessary data collection are strictly limited, reducing the risk of misuse or exposure.
Ban on Dark Patterns: Manipulative design features—known as “dark patterns”—that pressure children into sharing more data or spending excessive time online are prohibited. This includes pop-ups, misleading buttons, or rewards designed to encourage compulsive use.
Strong Parental Controls: Parents must be given tools to manage their child’s privacy settings, restrict purchases, monitor activity, and even delete accounts, especially for users under 13. These controls empower families to make informed decisions.
Transparency and Age Assessment: Platforms are required to clearly explain how they use data and make reasonable efforts to estimate the age of users. Information must be presented in age-appropriate language, so children and parents can understand what’s happening.
Enforcement and Penalties: The Nebraska Attorney General is empowered to enforce the law, with civil penalties up to $50,000 per violation. This strong enforcement mechanism ensures companies take their responsibilities seriously.
Social Media Restrictions: Under Nebraska’s Parental Rights in Social Media Act, platforms must verify ages, require parental consent for minors to open accounts, and provide parents with supervision tools, including the ability to revoke consent and delete accounts.
Where India’s Approach Falls Short: Lessons from the US
India faces significant implementation challenges and gaps that limit the effectiveness of child online protection
Heavy Reliance on Parental Consent: India requires parental consent for all users under 18, but many parents lack digital literacy or awareness, making this protection weak in practice.
Weak Platform Accountability: Unlike the US, Indian law does not impose a proactive “duty of care” on platforms to prevent harm.
Easy-to-Bypass Age Verification: Current systems for verifying age or consent are not stong, allowing children to access platforms meant for adults.
Exemptions and Loopholes: The government can exempt certain platforms or purposes from strict consent and monitoring rules, creating gaps in protection.
Limited Harm Prevention: The focus is on consent, not on actively preventing exposure to harmful or illegal content.
Low Digital Literacy: Many parents and guardians are not equipped to supervise or protect children online, reducing the effectiveness of consent-based safeguards.
What Can India Learn from the US Model?
Significant advantages await India if it customizes and applies essential components of the US approach.
Shift from Consent-Centric to Platform Accountability: India should move beyond relying solely on parental consent and require platforms to embed child safety into their design and operations. A legal “duty of care” would compel companies to proactively prevent harm rather than react after the fact.
Introduce Age-Appropriate Design Codes: Mandating age-appropriate design principles—such as default privacy settings, limits on addictive features, and restrictions on adult-minor interactions—would protect children more effectively.
Strengthen Digital Literacy and Parental Support: Government and civil society should invest in widespread digital literacy programs targeting parents, teachers, and children. Platforms should provide easy-to-use parental controls and clear guidance.
Enhance Transparency and Independent Audits: Requiring regular independent audits and public transparency reports would hold platforms accountable and build trust among users.
Tailor Regulations to India’s Diversity: India must develop context-sensitive regulations that account for linguistic diversity, digital access disparities, and cultural nuances, ensuring protections reach all children.
The Road Ahead: Building a Safer Digital Future for Indian Kids
The US’s new law represents a fundamental change in child online protection—one that balances privacy, safety, and digital empowerment. India’s evolving legal framework is a strong foundation, but it must evolve further to meet the realities of its population. By learning from the US experience and customizing solutions to India’s unique context, policymakers can create a digital environment where children are not only protected but also empowered to explore, learn, and grow safely. Protecting children online is a collective responsibility that involves lawmakers, technology companies, parents, educators, and children themselves. The US law offers a roadmap emphasizing platform accountability, transparency, and child-centric design. India can leverage these lessons to build a robust, practical, and inclusive framework that safeguards its young users in the digital age.
