Our work on protecting children online

Children are growing up in a digital world that wasn’t built for them. As the UK’s data protection regulator, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is working to change that by ensuring young people can explore, learn and play online without sacrificing their privacy or safety. 

Our Children’s code set standards for how online services must handle young people’s data. We’ve already delivered real impact by pushing companies to change their practices, with our work having the potential to improve online privacy for up to 11.7 million children.  

When companies fall short, we act: our fines against Reddit, MediaLab and TikTok sent a clear message that protecting children’s privacy is non-negotiable. 

Enforcement and engagement are critical regulatory tools, but it is only one part of our broader mission to reduce systemic online risks and uphold children’s rights. We also recognise that online safety requires a whole-society approach, including empowered families and digitally confident children. 

That’s why we launched the ‘Switched on to privacy’ campaign to help parents build their children’s digital life skills by having regular, confident conversations about online privacy. By embedding online privacy within digital literacy from the start, we can ensure every child grows up making informed choices about what personal information they share online.