How can the digital world uphold children’s best interests?

The digital world is transforming childhood – offering new opportunities but also new risks. From education to social connection, children’s lives are increasingly shaped by online experiences. But are digital spaces designed with their interests in mind? As new technologies emerge and change the global digital landscape, it is essential that policymakers, technology companies, and caregivers act to ensure that children’s rights, safety, and voices are at the center. From our latest working paper, here are 10 key takeaways to consider as we work towards a digital world that respects children’s full range of rights.

1. Safeguarding children’s rights in a fast-evolving digital world requires urgent action.

When designed with children’s best interests in mind, digital spaces can foster learning, creativity, and well-being. However, without proper safeguards, they can also expose young people to risks such as cyberbullying, privacy violations, exploitation, and harmful content. 

Policies must be more than well-intended, and their enforcement should be followed through. To achieve this, children’s voices should not only be heard but also directly inform actionable policies. This also includes considering their evolving capacities and embedding their perspectives into digital governance. In our research, however, we found little evidence of children having a say on their best interests online.

2. In all actions related to the digital environment, the best interests of every child is a primary consideration 

All decisions affecting children should be guided by the upholding of their rights, as set out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). The best interests of the child principle is a fundamental part of this, ensuring that any decision that may have a direct or indirect impact on children, primarily considers their best interests. This includes policies, regulations and the provision, design, operation and management of digital products and services that children use or may have access to. 

Applying this principle means recognizing that children are not just passive users of technology—they are rights-holders with a voice on how digital spaces are designed and governed.

3. Efforts to respect, protect, and fulfill children’s rights in the digital environment are growing, yet crucial gaps remain.

The increasing number of laws and policies that seek to protect children’s best interests in digital spaces demonstrates a growing commitment to promoting children's rights.

Yet these vary in their focus, scope and enforceability. Even where strong policies do exist, implementation gaps persist. Tech companies may comply with minimum legal requirements rather than actively prioritize children’s best interests. Additionally, laws and policies are national or regional in scope. This creates loopholes and difficulties in implementation and oversight of digital products and services that work across borders.

4. Children are not a homogenous group, yet are often treated as such.

Children’s best interests vary based on different developmental stages and evolving capacities, social and cultural contexts, digital literacy, and life situations. This makes it difficult to create one-size-fits-all policies that work for every child. Yet, in general, in relation to the digital environment children are considered at the collective level, not individually.

5. Not all children benefit equally from digital technologies. This exacerbates inequalities.

Many children lack internet access, face language barriers, or experience discrimination online. Low-income families, rural communities, and marginalized groups often face greater barriers to digital inclusion.

Additionally, algorithms and content recommendation systems can reinforce stereotypes, exclude certain groups, or expose children to harmful material. Inaccessible digital interfaces create further barriers for children with disabilities, deepening existing inequalities.

6. Balancing competing rights and conflicting interests.

Children’s rights are interconnected and indivisible. This means that, while developing policies that aim to protect children from online risks (such as access to harmful content), policymakers should also consider their rights to freedom of expression, access to information, and participation.

The interests of parents, governments, or tech companies may not always be based on children’s rights. This creates a conflict between children’s interests and the interests of others. For example, while age verification and parental controls help to keep children safe online, they can also limit children’s rights to privacy and self-expression. As children grow and gain more independence, protections must reflect their evolving capacities.

7. Policies must evolve to keep pace with rapid technological change.

Decisions about children’s best interests must be made today, but the digital landscape is constantly evolving. This means that what seems like a good decision now may not hold up in the future, or even for the same group of children as they grow and develop over time. To address this, policies must not only tackle current challenges but also anticipate the short-, medium-, and long-term impacts of technological developments on a child’s rights and development over time.

8. Businesses share the responsibility for upholding children's rights.

Governments play a key role in regulating the digital space, but technology companies also have a duty to uphold children’s rights. This includes designing rights-based, age-appropriate, and privacy-protecting products and services.

Many companies are introducing safety measures such as privacy-by-default settings, parental supervision tools and content moderation algorithms. Yet there is an urgent need for increased transparency around the uptake and efficacy of these measures, for clearer regulations, stronger oversight, and comprehensive guidance to ensure digital technologies genuinely protect children's rights. Integrating systematic Child Rights Impact Assessments into the design of digital products or services can help evaluate how emerging technologies may affect children's rights.

9. Children and young people are rarely included in shaping policies. This needs to change.

The process of developing policies often fails to consult children directly, leading to assumptions about their interests that may not align with their experiences and needs. To address this, child participation must be meaningful, not symbolic. Establishing ongoing consultation mechanisms is essential for ensuring children voice what is in their best interests.

10. UNICEF’s new research: listening to children’s voices and collaborating across sectors to improve approaches to the best interests principle

Upholding children’s rights in the digital world demands innovative, evidence-based approaches with children’s voices at the center.

By combining research, and consultations with children and experts, UNICEF’s Best Interests of the Child in Relation to the Digital Environment project aims to develop high-level recommendations for understanding and applying the best interests principle in the digital world.  The project stands out for its direct involvement of children and young people. Diverse groups of children and young people across seven countries will be invited to share their perspectives on what they think is or is not in their best interest when it comes to the digital environment. The project will also engage youth foresight practitioners and multi-sectoral experts – from the government, regulators, tech industry, and civil society – to identify the challenges and opportunities of implementing the best interests principle in the digital space. This collaborative, child-centered approach ensures that the recommendations will be informed by both real-world data and the voices of those most affected – children themselves.