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27 September 2024 / Robert Dalling , Abigail Dore
Issue: 8087 / Categories: Features , Privacy , Child law , Technology
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Online privacy: keeping kids safe

190811
Digital platforms must improve protections for children or risk fines, write Robert Dalling & Abigail Dore. But what exactly does the Children’s Code call for?
  • The ICO has urged 11 major social media and video-sharing platforms to enhance their privacy practices for children, as part of the ongoing enforcement of its Children’s Code.
  • Platforms found not to be in compliance with the code may be subject to enforcement measures, including hefty fines and regulatory scrutiny.

The Information Commissioner’s Office has called on 11 social media and video-sharing platforms (SMPs and VSPs) to improve their children’s privacy practices, amid rising concerns about inadequate privacy protections for children in digital spaces. This action forms part of the Children’s Code, which is designed to protect children’s privacy online by providing guidance on designing services that comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (SI 2003/2426) (PECR 2003).

The Children’s Code

The GDPR contains provisions designed to cater for the fact that children require special protection

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Workplace law firm expands commercial disputes team with senior consultant hire

EIP—Rob Barker

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Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

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Banking and restructuring team bolstered by insolvency specialist

NEWS
The Supreme Court has delivered a decisive ruling on termination under the JCT Design & Build form. Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Singer KC and Jonathan Ward, of Kings Chambers, analyse Providence Building Services v Hexagon Housing Association [2026] UKSC 1, which restores the first-instance decision and curbs contractors’ termination rights for repeated late payment
Secondments, disciplinary procedures and appeal chaos all feature in a quartet of recent rulings. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, examines how established principles are being tested in modern disputes
The AI revolution is no longer a distant murmur—it’s at the client’s desk. Writing in NLJ this week, Peter Ambrose, CEO of The Partnership and Legalito, warns that the ‘AI chickens’ have ‘come home to roost’, transforming not just legal practice but the lawyer–client relationship itself
A High Court ruling involving the Longleat estate has exposed the fault line between modern family building and historic trust drafting. Writing in NLJ this week, Charlotte Coyle, director and family law expert at Freeths, examines Cator v Thynn [2026] EWHC 209 (Ch), where trustees sought approval to modernise trusts that retain pre-1970 definitions of ‘child’, ‘grandchild’ and ‘issue’
Fresh proposals to criminalise ‘nudification’ apps, prioritise cyberflashing and non-consensual intimate images, and even ban under-16s from social media have reignited debate over whether the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is fit for purpose. Writing in NLJ this week, Alexander Brown, head of technology, media and telecommunications, and Alexandra Webster, managing associate, Simmons & Simmons, caution against reactive law-making that could undermine the Act’s ‘risk-based and outcomes-focused’ design
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