With regard to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s State of the European Union address, 144 organisations and supporters have published an open letter. In the letter, they call on the European Commission to hold digital service providers more accountable and to ensure that platforms are designed to be safe for children by default.

For some time now, there has been discussion about using corresponding online age-assurance mechanisms to protect young people, including those significantly below the age of majority, from certain risks. How this could be achieved, and whether age assurance can provide a solution for child and youth protection on the internet, were discussed on 9 September at the Internet Governance Forum Germany (IGF-D) in the panel discussion “Tell Me Your Age First… Online Age Assurance Between the Protection and Participation Needs of All.”

The Federal Ministry of Education, Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth has published the report “Together for a Better and Safer Internet” on child and youth participation for the Expert Commission in German language. The report documents the workshops held as part of the project “Child Protection and Children’s Rights in the Digital World”, which took place in spring 2026 with children and young people aged between 12 and 17, and brings together the suggestions, ideas and wishes of the young participants in 70 recommendations. These were presented to the expert commission on 7 May 2026.

The report presents the results of a global consultation in which more than 1,100 children from 49 countries were surveyed about artificial intelligence.

The Children are alright, also in the digital environment: this must be the immediate objective of the policy measures designed to implement the recommendations of the European Special Panel on Child Online Safety. This sets the guiding principle for policy-making; these decisions must be taken in the best interests of the child, as stipulated in Article 3 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The Special Panel on Child Safety Online today presented its recommendations to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. In their report, the experts examine how children and young people grow up in the digital environment, highlighting its advantages and disadvantages, and propose a framework based on the developmental stages of young people. The German expert commission on ‘Protecting Children and Young People in the Digital World’ has already taken a similar approach, having submitted its report to the German government just under three weeks ago.

The report by the co-chairs of the Special Committee on Children's Safety on the Internet has been published.

In July 2026, ECPAT Deutschland e.V. published a study in German. The study focuses on financial transactions related to the sexual exploitation of minors in the digital space. The accompanying policy brief was also made available in English.

This brief offers some guidance to help ensure we get children’s safety online right.

Protect Children has published a research report. The report examines the experiences and consequences of sexual violence and exploitation faced by victims both online and offline.