Consultation response: OFCOM consultation – Protecting Children from Harms Online

We, as a society, have reached a point where governments, civil society, parents and carers, and regulators are all demanding a better deal for children online. To achieve this, children need recognised in the digital environment as autonomous human rights holders with agency and evolving capacities, with distinct rights, views and interests to those of adults.

NICCY States: “The rights of every child must be respected, protected and fulfilled in the digital environment. Innovations in digital technologies affect children’s lives and their rights in ways that are wide-ranging and interdependent, even where children do not themselves access the Internet. Meaningful access to digital technologies can support children to realize the full range of their civil, political, cultural, economic and social rights. However, if digital inclusion is not achieved, existing inequalities are likely to increase, and new ones may arise.”

NICCY’s response to the OfCom consultation can be downloaded on the right-hand side of this page.