G7 agrees common online safety principles for young people
The agreement covers age assurance, privacy, digital literacy, AI-related harms, parental tools, and data sharing between digital services and researchers.
G7 digital and tech ministers have agreed common principles for protecting minors online, including age assurance, digital literacy, AI-related harms, and parental tools.
G7 digital and tech ministers have agreed a common set of principles for protecting minors online, covering digital services, generative AI risks, age assurance, privacy, parental tools, and digital literacy.
The agreement, published on 29 May 2026, brings together Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union around shared principles for a safer and more secure digital space for children and teenagers.
The European Commission says the principles are inspired by the European Union’s existing approach to online safety for children, including the Digital Services Act, the Better Internet for Kids Strategy, the AI Act, and the Cyberbullying Action Plan.
The agreement calls on digital service providers to turn the principles into action. Schools, teachers, parents, guardians, regulators, civil society groups, and minors are also named as part of the wider effort to reduce online risks.
The G7 principles will be implemented through an action plan with initiatives designed to support a safer digital environment for minors and strengthen scientific knowledge of digital services.
Age assurance and safety-by-design included
The seven principles include risk management, assessment, and mitigation measures that are embedded in safety-by-design approaches. The G7 agreement also calls for greater transparency in the design and development of digital services used by minors.
The principles include robust, reliable, and privacy-preserving age assurance systems to support age-appropriate online experiences and prevent minors from accessing age-restricted digital services.
The agreement also calls for a high level of privacy and safety for minors’ accounts. That includes recommendation systems designed to reduce excessive online engagement, alongside tools intended to give children more control over their online experiences.
The European Commission says the principles are designed to protect safety, privacy, fundamental freedoms, and rights while allowing minors to benefit from new technologies.
G7 targets AI-related online harms
The G7 agreement includes measures to prevent the generation, creation, and distribution of child sexual abuse material and non-consensual intimate images, including content created through AI.
The principles also call for support systems for victims and cooperation between digital services and researchers. That cooperation is intended to enable data sharing to improve understanding of online risks and strengthen protective measures for minors.
Digital literacy is included as a core part of the agreement. The principles call for programs that are accessible to parents, teachers, and minors, including education on risks linked to generative AI.
Parental tools are also included. The agreement calls for simple, effective, and interoperable tools that help parents and guardians supervise minors’ online activity.
EU links agreement to Digital Services Act
The European Commission says the G7 principles reflect measures already in place or being advanced at European Union level. Those include the Digital Services Act and its Guidelines on the protection of minors, Safer Internet Centres under the Better Internet for Kids Strategy, the AI Act, and the Cyberbullying Action Plan.
The Commission is also developing an EU Age Verification app blueprint, intended to provide a user-friendly and privacy-preserving age verification method that is interoperable with future EU Digital Identity Wallets.
The Commission has signed cooperation agreements with Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, the United Kingdom’s Ofcom, and Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications to support enforcement of the Digital Services Act, including on the protection of minors.
The G7 action plan will set out initiatives linked to the common principles. The agreement calls for continued cooperation between G7 partners, digital service providers, national authorities, civil society, parents, teachers, and minors.
