Private sector should help to protect children online

A woman and her daughter watch a movie on their laptop. [Getty Images]

Every child must be protected from violence, exploitation, and abuse on the Internet. The growth in digital technologies has created unique opportunities for children and young people to communicate, connect, share, learn, access information, and express their opinions on matters affecting their lives and communities.

In contrast, increasing access to online services also poses significant challenges to children's safety, both online and offline. Issues range from intrusion to privacy, bullying, exposure to age-inappropriate content, scammers, and crimes like online grooming, sextortion, and child pornography. Threats are multiplying and perpetrators increasingly operate simultaneously across borders, making them hard to track and harder to hold to account.