Published on: 2026-08-10
Source: United Nations – United Nations –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
August 10, 2026 Human Rights
Today, more than 80 percent of young people aged 15 to 24 worldwide spend time on the internet, and in low-income countries, this group of internet users is the largest.
On Monday, the UN issued a warning: when it comes to misinformation, online bullying, and the “shadow” side of artificial intelligence, the younger generation takes the brunt of the impact.
In a new analytical note published ahead of International Youth Day (August 12), the UN called on countries, technology companies, advertisers, media, and researchers to prioritize protecting children and their involvement in addressing this issue.
Last month, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for a “Global Commitment to Child Safety in AI,” comparing emerging AI technologies to untested medicines and demanding tighter regulation.
“No child should be a guinea pig for unregulated AI… When a child is harmed, the answer should never be: ‘it’s all about the algorithm,'” Guterres said in July at the first Global Dialogue on AI Governance.
An unsafe online environment is not an accident
The report emphasizes that the threats faced by young people on the internet do not arise spontaneously. They are a direct consequence of business models that monetize attention and personal data, as well as the corresponding design decisions.
Children, whose habits, personality, and social connections are still developing, are particularly vulnerable to algorithms that cause addiction, “loot boxes,” and other tricks that push users toward compulsive internet use.
The development of artificial intelligence outpaces efforts to regulate its rapid implementation, exacerbating existing threats – from deepfakes and generated content to exploitation using AI.
Moreover, the report highlights covert advertising techniques used to increase online spending.
Not only a risk group
The authors of the report emphasize: children and youth are far from being just potential victims. They act as content creators, human rights defenders, and organizers of youth movements.
However, the same online platforms that empower such movements subject their leaders – especially girls, minorities, and activists – to cyberbullying and surveillance.
The opinion of the youth themselves must be taken into account in research and when drafting laws aimed at protecting the information environment, the authors of the report emphasized.
“Children and youth are among those who suffer the most from today’s information crisis, and at the same time those who are best able to help resolve it,” said Charlotte Skadden, Senior Advisor on Information Integrity at the United Nations. “Protecting youth and engaging them in dialogue are not mutually exclusive goals. We need to do both.”
Next steps
The report notes that governments and public organizations are increasingly prioritizing the issue of children’s online safety in discussions of laws on addictive design, targeted advertising, content moderation, and privacy.
However, as AI becomes ubiquitous, the window of opportunity to embed children’s rights into AI governance standards is rapidly closing.
The document proposes concrete steps: countries should establish a legislative framework, tech companies should implement built-in child protection mechanisms, advertisers should prioritize children’s rights over profits, the media should create quality content for the young audience, and experts should fill data gaps, especially in Global South countries.
The UN continues to promote AI regulation, including through the Global Dialogue and the Independent International Scientific Group on AI – a body established to assess the opportunities and risks of this technology.
“As digital technologies and the information environment continue to evolve, the current moment gives us the opportunity to move from declaring principles to taking practical actions,” the report states.
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