Following today’s presentation of the recommendations by the expert commission “Protection of Children and Young People in the Digital World”, appointed by the German Federal Minister for Education, Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, on the use of social media by children and young people, eco – Association of the Internet Industry welcomes the intensive examination of the protection of children and young people in the digital environment.
Children and young people today grow up with digital services as a natural part of everyday life. Social media, messaging services and platforms are key spaces for communication, information, education and societal participation. This makes it all the more important to consider and further develop protection, empowerment and participation as an integrated whole.
Making the protection of minors in the media more effective: strengthening tried-and-tested structures rather than creating parallel ones
eco particularly welcomes the Commission’s guiding principle of consistently building on tried-and-tested structures when further developing the protection of minors in the media, scaling up successful measures and ensuring their long-term sustainability. Rather than creating new, temporary individual measures, eco believes it is essential to secure existing services in the long term, expand them and integrate them more effectively with one another:
“Effective protection of minors in the media is achieved where protection, empowerment and participation are considered together and build on proven structures. Many of these services have proven their worth in practice. They should be specifically strengthened and further developed, rather than creating new, short-term structures in parallel”, says Alexandra Koch-Skiba, Head of the eco Complaints Office.
One example of this principle is the German Safer Internet Centre. There, the eco Complaints Office, klicksafe, the FSM, jugendschutz.net and Nummer gegen Kummer work together within an established partnership to combine prevention, media literacy, counselling and complaint handling. The model demonstrates how existing structures are already successfully connected and can be further developed in a targeted manner.
The eco Complaints Office has been supporting Internet users for 30 years in reporting illegal content, working closely with law enforcement agencies, hosting providers and international partner organisations. Reporting channels must be clear, easy to find and accessible for those affected.
“Young people in particular need accessible and trustworthy points of contact when they come across problematic or illegal content. It is crucial that support is readily available and that existing services are well connected”, explains Koch-Skiba.
Effective protection of minors in the media requires a combination of protective measures, media literacy and a European regulatory framework
From eco’s perspective, it is also essential to consistently further develop existing protection mechanisms for minors and to further strengthen media literacy. Many digital services already provide age-appropriate safety and protection settings, which should be continuously reviewed and adapted to new challenges.
Against this background, we welcome the fact that the expert commission has not advocated a strict minimum age with a high age threshold, but has instead prioritised the further development of risk-based approaches.
“However, technical safeguards alone are not enough. Children and young people need the ability to recognise risks, evaluate content critically and use digital services responsibly. Media literacy is a key building block for effective and future-proof protection of minors in the media. Planned initiatives such as the ‘AI Seepferdchen’ are therefore a step in the right direction”, says Koch-Skiba.
With regard to the regulatory framework, eco emphasises the importance of a coherent European approach. The Digital Services Act already contains comprehensive provisions for the protection of minors on online platforms. These provisions should be consistently implemented and further developed to ensure a high and uniform level of protection across Europe.
About eco
With more than 1,000 member companies, eco – Association of the Internet Industry is the largest association representing the Internet industry in Europe. For more than 30 years, eco has been shaping the development of the Internet, promoting digital innovation and championing a secure, trustworthy and high-performance digital ecosystem.
About the eco Complaints Office
The eco Complaints Office has been active since 1996 and is an integral part of Germany’s system of regulated self-regulation. It enables Internet users to report content harmful to young people and criminal content free of charge and anonymously, and works closely with providers, public authorities and international partners.
To mark its 30th anniversary, we are pleased to offer interested media representatives background briefings and in-depth insights into the work of the eco Complaints Office in Cologne.
