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Children's Code

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The Children's Code, also known as the age appropriate design code, is a British internet safety and privacy code of practice enforced by the Information Commissioner's Office. It applies to any internet-connected product or service that is likely to be accessed by a person under the age of 18.

The draft Code was published in April 2019,[1][2] as instructed by the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA).[3] The final regulations were published on 27 January 2020 and took effect 2 September 2020, with a one-year grace period before the beginning of enforcement.[4][5] Compliance with the Children's Code is enforced under the DPA.[1][2]

Contents

The Children's Code is a code of practice enforceable under the Data Protection Act 2018, and is consistent with GDPR and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It specifies design standards for any information society services (ISS, which includes websites, software and apps, and connected toys) that are likely to be used by a person under the age of 18, and is based in or serves users within the United Kingdom.[3][6]

The Code requires that services be designed in the "best interests" of children, including their physical and mental health, protecting them from being exploited commercially or sexually, and acknowledging parents and caregivers' roles in protecting and supporting their child's best interests.[3] The Code specifies that when used by a child, online services must use their highest privacy settings by default, unless there is a "compelling" reason to do so while keeping into account the best interests of the child. This not allowing access to data by other users, ___location tracking, or behavioural profiling (such as algorithmic curation and targeted advertising).[3] The amount of data collected from children must be minimized, only collecting data that is strictly necessary to deliver service elements that a child is "actively and knowingly engaged" in. A service may not disclose a child's personal data to a third party without a compelling reason to do so.[3]

Services must be transparent, and present their privacy policy, privacy options, and data export and erasure tools in clear and age-appropriate means. They must not use dark patterns to "nudge" children towards options that reduce their privacy.[3]

Impact

Social media services adjusted their services to comply with the Code; on Instagram, all accounts created by under-18s began to be marked as private by default, and adults may not direct message them unless they are followers. TikTok stated that it will not send push notifications to children during the evening and nighttime hours, while YouTube stated that it would not enforce personalization or targeted advertising for children.[7][8] YouTube had already done so on videos tagged as "made for kids" in compliance with a ruling under the U.S. Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).[9][10]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Under-18s face 'like' and 'streaks' limits". BBC News. 15 April 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
  2. ^ a b Greenfield, Patrick (15 April 2019). "Facebook urged to disable 'like' feature for child users". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "ICO's 'Children's Code' applies from today – what you need to know". Eversheds Sutherland. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  4. ^ Lomas, Natasha (2020-01-22). "UK watchdog sets out 'age appropriate' design code for online services to keep kids' privacy safe". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  5. ^ Lomas, Natasha (2021-09-01). "UK now expects compliance with children's privacy design code". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  6. ^ Jane Wakefield (1 September 2021), Children's internet code: What is it and how will it work?, BBC News
  7. ^ "YouTube accused of collecting UK children's data". BBC News. 2023-03-01. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  8. ^ "Children's internet code: What is it and how will it work?". BBC News. 2021-09-01. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  9. ^ Matthews, David (January 6, 2020). "YouTube rolls out new controls aimed at controlling children's content". TechSpot. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
  10. ^ Kelly, Makena (December 11, 2019). "YouTube calls for 'more clarity' on the FTC's child privacy rules". The Verge. Retrieved December 11, 2019.


 

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