Digital privacy and parental controls for child safety

Digital safety for children involves understanding complex data privacy terms and utilizing device-specific safeguards. Privacy frameworks such as COPPA in the United States and GDPR-K in the United Kingdom and European Union require platforms to obtain parental consent before collecting personal data from children under 13. Key data points that can identify a child include not only names and addresses but also photographs, voice recordings, location data, device identifiers, and activity history.

Apple is enhancing its safety ecosystem with upcoming updates to iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. The new system centers on a Child Account, which automates age-based restrictions for the App Store and adult websites. New features include ‘Ask to Browse,’ which requires parental approval before a child can visit a new website in Safari, and expanded controls for managing contacts and app downloads.