Children’s Safety and Privacy in the Digital Age

Adrienne Lipsey and Noah Zon worked with CSA Group to look at areas of risk to young people’s online well-being.

For children growing up in Canada today, the divide between their online world and their offline one is narrower than it has ever been.

Growing up means growing up online. But while parents and children can rely on safety standards and regulations to ensure safe experiences for children in everything from car seats and hockey helmets to TV shows, policies and standards for online safety have not been developed to match the central role that digital tools play in learning, socializing, and expressing themselves for children and youth.

As policymakers, standards development organizations, and industry develop new solutions and policies to address growing concerns about the digital age, such as privacy, competition, and cybersecurity, it is important that responses from industry, public policy, and standards not fall prey to the same blind spots.