DPDPA Reshaping Children’s Social Media Access
In a historic move that places parents at the helm of their children’s digital journeys, India has unveiled the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP) 2023 that will fundamentally transform minors’ interaction with social media platforms. Meity has also passed the DPDPA Rule on January 3rd, which establishes a strict requirement for verifiable parental consent. The Law of land works on principle of Parens patriae which means “parent of the nation” or “parent of the country.” It becomes boundant duty of the State to protect any child below 18 years of age as they are the vulnerable section of society. This law will lead to potential dynamic transformation in the social media world
Guardians as Digital Gatekeepers
The draft Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025, mandates “verifiable consent” from parents or legal guardians before processing minors’ personal data. The consent mechanism cannot be a cosmetic compliance as it isn’t a mere checkbox rather it poses additional obligation on organizations to ensure and authenticate the relationship between guardian and the child through verifiable and reliable system.
The world has become a small, interconnected village, and in keeping with global practices in the digital realm—especially in response to the alarming rise in cyberbullying, child exploitation, exposure to harmful content, and privacy breaches—the youth, as a fragile and impressionable group, have become more vulnerable than ever before.
Global Context and Age Thresholds
India’s approach is identical to international frameworks in arena of minor laws; however, different nation has different age while determining who is a minor. The United States’ Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) requires consent of parents for children under the age of 13 years, while the General Data Protection Regulation of European Union has set to 16 years as the standard age, with flexibility for member states to lower it to 13.
India has established the age threshold at 18 years, aligning with the existing regulatory frameworks governing both civil and criminal laws across the country. This decision reflects a consistent approach to ensure uniformity within the legal system.
The Digital Predicament
In India, “More than 57 per cent of children in the 14-16 age group use smartphones for educational purposes, while 76 per cent of them use the device for accessing social media”, according to the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER)
The timing of DPDPA couldn’t be more critical. India is a country where over 100 million adolescents are actively using the internet, the relationship between screen time and well-being has become a pressing concern. Various Research has increasingly linked excessive screen exposure to lack of sleep, reduced self-confidence, anxiety and depression symptoms.
The Balancing Act
The DPDPA does not make it a blanket guidelines for processing of children data rather it introduces reasonable exceptions in its ambit. Rule 11, read with the Fourth Schedule, exempts certain entities from obtaining verifiable parental consent, including healthcare professions and institutions, educational institutions, crèches, and child day care centers, however, the data processing is strictly limited to necessary services only.
The Exemptions further extend to specific processing activities, such as creating email accounts, age verification, and protecting children from harmful content. The exemptions strike a balancing effect between necessity and the best interest of children.
Implementation Challenges
While the intent is laudable, there still exist laudable problems. Verifying parental relationships in a country with vast socioeconomic and geographic disparities poses substantial challenges. Indian being a developing nation the operational handout might be an issue. Moreover, pinning down responsibility on Data Fiduciary without creating awareness might not be the ultimate solution that we are searching for.
The Path Forward
While navigating this digital watershed moment, the challenge lies in balancing protection of freedom of speech and expression, while not acting as deterrent for growth of children along with creating necessary roadblocks from dangerous content. The outcome is intended, and likely shape will likely shape a technology driven yet protected environment for the minors.
