Government to protect children online while enabling safe access to digital technologies

What happened: government reiterates a child-safety approach for online access

The Ministry of Women and Child Development stated that India wants children to benefit from digital technologies for education, information, and services. The ministry also recognised online risks for children such as exposure to harmful content, cyberbullying, online abuse, excessive screen time, and digital dependency. The government response described in the announcement is built on legal duties for intermediaries, safeguards for children’s personal data, and coordinated institutions and awareness measures for cyber-crime handling and school-level prevention.

Background and earlier position: safeguards built through IT and data protection law

India’s online child-protection approach in the announcement relies on a combined legal and regulatory structure: Information Technology Act, 2000 with Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code Rules, 2021 (as amended) that focus on intermediary due diligence and bans on hosting/transmission of unlawful content.Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 that provides safeguards for children’s personal data through consent and limits on certain children-directed practices.

What changed now: implementation emphasis in the announcement

The announcement emphasises operational execution through enforcement support and child-rights capacity-building. The announcement names: Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs as an ecosystem for coordinated law-enforcement response to cyber-crimes.National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (cybercrime.gov.in) for public reporting of cyber-crimes, including crimes against children.National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) and education-sector guidance resources for online safety and cyberbullying prevention.