The train we are supposed to board next year with our ticket safely stored in the European Digital Identity Wallet is future bound. This is one of the take aways from the European Dialogue on Internet Governance – EuroDIG 2026. The conference was designed to take a look back and forward in Internet Governance based on the WSIS+20 review process and the 20th anniversary of the Top-Level-Domain .eu.

The next European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG) will take place in Brussels on 26 and 27 May. Under the theme “European Voices for the Future of the Internet – Celebrating 20 Years of .eu and the Beginning of a New Internet Governance Era”, representatives from the fields of politics, industry, civil society, academia and technology will come together to discuss current developments and network. The hybrid event is hosted by the European Commission, at whose premises the conference will take place, and EURid. Registrations for in-person attendance are open until 15 May, whilst for virtual attendance remains open until the beginning of the event.

Representatives from industry and business, regulatory and administrative bodies, and civil society gathered in Manchester (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) this week, from 14 to 16 April, to exchange information on current developments in the field of age assurance. Following the two previous Global Age Assurance Standards Summits, which focused on the rationale and benefits of standardisation (2024) and the development of effective regulation (2025), this year’s conference centred on the implementation and realisation of age assurance measures.

Today, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hosted the first meeting of the Special Panel on child safety online. The panel, announced in the 2025 State of the Union address, will provide expert recommendations to better protect and empower children online and will explore the need for potential harmonised age restrictions to access social media.

On Safer Internet Day 2026, the European Commission presented an action plan against cyberbullying to protect young people online. It is based on three pillars to protecting the mental health of children and young people online. Under this plan, the European Commission is committed to making more targeted use of existing programs and instruments to combat cyberbullying and invites all member states of the European Union to develop national action plans to support the cause jointly and equally, as well as to improve the data and knowledge base on the phenomenon.

Since 2015, the Council of Europe has been calling for the protection of children from sexual exploitation and sexual violence on November 18—both offline and online. For the tenth consecutive year, the aim of the day of action is to raise awareness of sexual violence against children, provide comprehensive information to the public, and promote effective prevention and protection measures. By ratifying the Lanzarote Convention, Germany has also made a legal commitment to take measures to combat sexual violence.

‘Parents Talk Online Safety’ is a new More in Common study based on speaking with almost 10,000 parents across the US, UK, France, Poland and the Netherlands. The research finds parents both highly concerned about the online safety of their children and struggling with keeping their kids safe online and deeply frustrated with both politicians and tech company leaders for failure to grip the problem.

At the annual general meeting of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the board decided to continue the Registration Data Request System (RDRS) for another two years.

The European Commission has formally adopted the Decision to launch the Network for the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse. This new expert group will bring together policymakers, experts, and practitioners to address the prevention of sexualized violence against children and young people, both online and offline. Its establishment marks an important milestone in child protection in the EU.

During the summer holidays, families spend time together and create many special memories, whether they're swimming, playing games or eating ice cream. These memories are invaluable to caregivers and relatives alike. However, sharing images of children on social networks can pose risks.

On the second and third days of TrustCon, the focus was on procedures for assessing the impact on children's rights (Child Rights Impact Assessment) and regulatory sandboxes.

We are the new kids on the block taking part for the first time in TrustCon, an international conference on trust and safety in the digital world. And we are excited how prominently children’s best interest in the digital environment features among this highly technology oriented crowd.