Today's Edition
MAYS IBRAHIM (ABU DHABI)
Before leaving for work, Sara Al Nuaimi checks her 12-year-old daughter’s tablet, looking for unfamiliar apps or messages.
“I don’t want to spy. I just want to know she’s safe,” the mother of three young children told Aletihad over the phone on Sunday.
Screens are now part of daily life for many children in the UAE, used for school assignments, entertainment and staying in touch with friends. Parents say the growing role of digital platforms has brought new pressures around supervision, privacy and online safety.
The UAE’s new Child Digital Protection Law aims to address those concerns and protect young users through a comprehensive legislative framework that applies to digital platforms, internet service providers, and caregivers.
Among its requirements are mandatory age verification, default privacy settings, content filtering, and restrictions on gambling or commercial gaming. The new law also establishes a system to categorise all digital platforms, whether operating within the UAE or directed to users within the UAE, based on their risks and impact on children.
For parents like Kareem, who has two children, keeping up with online risks can feel overwhelming, and the new framework offers a sense of relief.
“Kids grow up so fast with technology. One click, and they can stumble into something harmful,” he told Aletihad over the phone on Sunday.
The father of two expressed hope that this new law will give parents “some breathing space” while also allowing children to explore the digital world safely.
Experts say the new law comes at a time when digital exposure among children is both inevitable and risk-laden.
In today’s fast-moving digital world, children are exposed to dangers that previous generations never imagined, Audrey Hametner, founder and CEO of The Bedrock Programme – a social enterprise dedicated to nurturing future leaders – told Aletihad in an interview on Sunday.
Poor decisions made online can have long-lasting consequences through adulthood, making careful digital guidance essential for children’s safe development and self-esteem, she explained.
“Our children are exposed to people worlds away, and it is up to caregivers and educators to ensure they have some safeguards in place. Children deserve to experience growth and exploration without trauma and exploitation.”
Hametner stressed that protecting children online is not up to parents and caregivers alone – legal accountability forces tech companies to develop platforms that are safer by design.
By preventing children from inadvertently encountering harmful content, providing clarity to educational technology providers on age-appropriate material, and limiting the collection of children’s data to help them develop healthy online habits, Hametner noted that the law addresses risks previously left to the vigilance of parents and schools.
She added that stronger protection backed by legal ramifications helps shift online risks from “could be a concern” to “is a responsibility” for parents and caregivers.
System-wide Shift in Accountability
Professor Saeed Khalfan Aldhaheri, President of the Robotics & Automation Society and UAE board member of the Emirates Safer Internet Society, said that the law positions the UAE as a global leader in digital child safety governance.
“For too long, child safety relied on voluntary measures rather than clear accountability,” Aldhaheri told Aletihad on Sunday. “This law makes the internet safer for children in the UAE by shifting protection from voluntary guidelines to enforceable legal obligations.”
Its “safety by design” approach, he explained, requires digital platforms to implement robust age-verification mechanisms, enforce age-appropriate content classification, apply default privacy settings, prevent harmful or exploitative content, restrict targeted advertising, and cooperate with UAE authorities.
Parents, meanwhile, will benefit from tools that make monitoring easier without being intrusive, Aldhaheri added.
Integrated parental controls, filtering, and age-restriction tools, combined with national awareness programmes, will help families move from reactive supervision to proactive digital parenting, he noted.
Meanwhile, the mandated establishment of a Child Digital Safety Council to coordinate policies, awareness campaigns, and monitor emerging risks will give children the freedom to explore and learn online while ensuring they are shielded from exploitation and harm.
