The role of digital platforms has moved to the center of the regulatory debate on the protection of children and adolescents, within the scope of the Permanent Committee on Children and Youth (COPEIJ). The meeting brought together representatives from state prosecutors’ offices and the Federal Public Ministry to discuss national strategies in response to the challenges posed by the new Digital ECA.
During her participation, ANPD Director Miriam Wimmer emphasized that the new legal framework significantly changes the role of digital platforms, which are now recognized as central actors in the organization, curation, and moderation of online experiences, entailing new regulatory obligations and greater accountability for the risks generated to more vulnerable users. This translates into a proactive responsibility for platforms, consisting of the duty to incorporate, from the design stage of their products and services, protection mechanisms aimed at preventing and mitigating harm to children and adolescents. Such mechanisms include, for example, age verification tools, parental controls, and interface design adjustments, with a focus on safety and reducing exposure to risk.
Furthermore, according to Wimmer, there is no single or universally applicable solution for age verification on platforms, as the choice of an appropriate mechanism must take into account the context of the application, the level of risk involved, and the principle of proportionality.
To help define this, the ANPD has already taken a concrete step by publishing, through the Superintendency of Regulation, the Call for Contributions on the Guidance Document “Age Verification Mechanisms,” within the framework of actions related to the implementation of the Digital ECA. The document is open for public consultation on the Brasil Participativo platform, with contributions accepted until July 9. The initiative aims to update the Preliminary Guidelines on the subject, previously published by the ANPD, with the goal of providing general instructions on the application of reliable age verification mechanisms by suppliers of information technology products or services directed at children and adolescents, or likely to be accessed by this audience.
Another relevant aspect is the regulation’s initial focus on app stores and operating systems, considered structural entry points of the digital ecosystem. In this sense, the strategy indicates a systemic approach, insofar as, by regulating more central layers of the digital infrastructure, the ANPD seeks to induce compliance standards that radiate to developers and other platforms.
In this sense, the regulatory advancement reinforces a shift from a reactive to a preventive model of digital governance, one in which platform design becomes a key element in the protection of fundamental rights in the online environment.