The article highlights the most important arguments and summarizes the key policy demands of the Eurochild position paper “Protecting children online without silencing them.”

On 10 September, the Internet Governance Forum Germany (IGF-D) met in Berlin to discuss current issues and developments in the governance and regulation of the internet. Under this year's motto, ‘Trust, Responsibility, Networking: Internet Governance in Uncertain Times,’ representatives from the fields of politics, business, technology, civil society, science and research, as well as youth, met in their national structure (NRI)to reflect on relevant aspects from a German perspective.

18 organizations and experts, including members of the European Parliament (MEP) and the EP Intergroup on Children's Rights, have jointly addressed an open letter to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on the occasion of the State of Union speech. In the letter, they call for a renewal and strengthening of the commitment to protecting and enforcing children's rights through the effective implementation of EU regulations in the digital sphere by the European Commission.

Starting in autumn 2025, an expert commission will examine the steps necessary for effective protection of children and young people in the media. Federal Youth Minister Karin Prien presented the commission's members, objectives and working methods at a federal press conference.

The European Union is currently developing an action plan against cyberbullying, which will include concrete measures for adults, educational institutions, and online platforms. The aim is to better protect, support, and empower children and young people in the digital space.

More and more children and young people are being exposed to sexual violence on the internet. The latest figures from the 2024 German Police Crime Statistics (PKS) and new analyses by the Independent Commissioner for Child Sexual Abuse Issues (UBSKM) and jugendschutz.net show that the extent and forms of digital sexual violence continue to increase. You can read more about this topic in this article.

Today, July 29th, 2025 an informal stakeholder consultation was held by the United Nations within the Word Summit of Information Society – WSIS + 20 review process.

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.

When age verification is discussed at a conference on trust and safety on the Internet, it is easy to assume that the confidentiality of the data used in such procedures is the issue. Surprisingly, however, the focus at TrustCon is much more on the contribution that age verification can make to a safe and age-appropriate online experience for minors.

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.

Germany has taken a decisive step in the fight against sexual violence against children. The newly adopted law, the Gesetz zur Stärkung der Strukturen gegen sexuelle Gewalt an Kindern und Jugendlichen (UBSKMG), introduces measures to strengthen structures against sexual violence against children and young people.