UAE Child Digital Safety Forum Highlights Social Media's Role In Protecting Children Online

The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department has wrapped up the Child Digital Safety Forum, which examined how institutions and society can protect children online as the UAE’s Federal Decree-Law No. 26 of 2025 on Child Digital Safety comes into force, highlighting the law’s requirements for platforms and the need for coordinated national action.

The event ran under the theme "Towards a Safe and Sustainable Digital Environment for Future Generations", with participants stressing that legal measures must be linked to awareness programmes, technical solutions and joint responsibility across families, schools, technology companies and regulators to create safer online spaces for children in the UAE and beyond.

Speakers noted that the new Federal Decree-Law No. 26 of 2025 on Child Digital Safety aims to provide a comprehensive legal basis for tackling online risks facing children, while Abu Dhabi Judicial Department officials underlined that the legislation introduces specific obligations for digital platforms and supports stronger cooperation among competent authorities in investigations and enforcement.

Sessions also looked at the institutional dimension of child digital safety, with participants outlining how government bodies, judiciary entities and independent organisations can coordinate to monitor compliance, share data on cyber threats affecting children and align national procedures with international human rights standards in areas such as privacy, freedom of expression and protection from exploitation.

Dr. Mohammed Al Kuwaiti, Head of the Cybersecurity Council of the UAE Government, delivered a presentation titled "Cybersecurity in the Digital Environment and Its Role in Child Protection", where Dr. Mohammed Al Kuwaiti described emerging cyber threats targeting young users and highlighted the need for a proactive defence model combining smart technologies, updated legislation and clear coordination between all responsible bodies.

Addressing the human rights dimension of child digital safety, Dr. Fatima Al Kaabi, Vice Chairperson of the National Human Rights Institution, explained that the new law is designed to align with international conventions and aims to achieve a balance between protecting children from online harm and preserving their digital rights, including access, participation and protection of personal data.

Child digital safety, platforms and regulatory frameworks

The forum examined the responsibilities of social media and technology companies in child digital safety, as Dr. Ahmed Abdel Zaher, Legal Adviser at the Technical Office of the Undersecretary of the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, outlined how legal frameworks govern platform operations, define accountability, and introduce technical mechanisms, such as filtering and reporting tools, that are intended to reduce children’s exposure to online abuse.

Debate extended to policy approaches for child digital safety, where Dr Mahmoud Muslim, journalist and member of the Egyptian Senate, argued that authorities should move away from policies focused mainly on restriction and instead build digital awareness and resilience among children and families, emphasising the contribution of education systems and media institutions in promoting responsible online behaviour.

Child digital safety, artificial intelligence and cross-border crime

Colleen O’Toole, a former appellate judge and prosecutor in Ashtabula County, Ohio, discussed legal accountability for artificial intelligence platforms in cases involving offences against children, examining how regulators can impose obligations, address algorithmic risks and adapt enforcement tools to keep pace with rapid technological development in areas such as automated content generation and personalised recommendations.

The second day of the Child Digital Safety Forum, held via the virtual platform of the Abu Dhabi Judicial Academy and moderated by Counsellor Hassan Al Hammadi, Director of the Prosecution Administration in Abu Dhabi, concluded with a session where Dr Sami Al Toukhy, Director of the Abu Dhabi Judicial Academy, called for progress on "digital judicial sovereignty" to handle cross-border cybercrime and stated that the new law clarifies platform duties while supporting the UAE’s wider efforts on child digital safety.

With inputs from WAM