ANCOM: EC guidelines on the protection of minors online apply to all online platforms accessible to minors

The recruitment of minors for abusive purposes (grooming), problematic addictive behaviors and cyberbullying are on the list of guidelines on the protection of minors in the online environment, developed by the European Commission under the Digital Services Regulation (DSA), the National Authority for Administration and Regulation in Communications (ANCOM) announced on Wednesday.

"The guidelines on the protection of minors online, developed by the European Commission under the Digital Services Regulation (DSA), include a non-exhaustive list of proportionate and appropriate measures to protect minors against online risks, such as: solicitation of minors for abusive purposes (grooming), harmful content, problematic addictive behaviors, cyberbullying, but also harmful commercial practices," the Authority states in a statement sent to AGERPRES.

The guidelines apply to all online platforms accessible to minors, with the exception of micro and small enterprises.

Key recommendations include: setting minors' accounts to private by default, so that personal information, data and content published by them remain hidden from unknown persons, to reduce the risk of unsolicited contact; modifying platforms' recommendation systems to limit minors' exposure to harmful content or so-called "rabbit holes". It is recommended that platforms give minors greater control over their own content streams; empowering minors to block or disable notifications for any user, as well as preventing them from being added to groups without their explicit consent - measures that can reduce the risk of cyberbullying.

Other recommendations also aim to prohibit the downloading or taking screenshots of content posted by minors by other users, to prevent the unauthorized distribution of intimate or sexual material and sexual extortion; the implicit disabling of features that encourage excessive use, such as "streaks", ephemeral content, read receipts, autoplay or push notifications.

The EC also recommends eliminating persuasive design aimed at maximizing engagement and applying safety measures regarding chatbots based on artificial intelligence; preventing the exploitation of the lack of commercial literacy of minors, so that they are not exposed to manipulative practices or those that may generate unwanted spending and addictive behaviors - including through virtual currencies or "loot boxes"; introducing measures to improve moderation and reporting tools, including prompt feedback and minimum requirements for parental control tools.

"The Guidelines recommend the use of effective age verification methods, methods that are "accurate, reliable, robust, non-invasive and non-discriminatory", especially in terms of restricting access to adult content (such as pornography or gambling), but also in cases where national legislation establishes a minimum age for access to certain services. The framework method for age verification on the basis of which applications can be built, as well as the European Digital Identity Wallets, which will become available soon, will be examples of compliance and reference standards for the device-based age verification method. In other cases, such as when the terms and conditions establish a minimum age lower than 18 years, due to the risks identified for minors, the Guidelines recommend age estimation", ANCOM emphasizes in the press release.

Like the DSA Regulation, the guidelines adopt a risk-based approach, recognizing that online platforms may present different types of risks to minors, depending on their nature, size, purpose and user base.

"The guidelines promote an approach focused on safety and privacy by design and are anchored in the rights of minors. Platforms must ensure that the measures adopted do not disproportionately restrict the rights of minors," ANCOM says.

Both the European Commission and ANCOM will use these Guidelines in assessing compliance with the obligations set out in Article 28(1) of the Digital Services Regulation by intermediary service providers.

According to the cited source, compliance with the Guidelines is voluntary and does not automatically guarantee compliance with the Regulation.