- Federal Council strengthens child and youth protection through regulation of platforms, new Youth Protection Act (JSFVG) and review of age limits for social networks.
- Data protection and secure school IT: DSG requirements, specific protection provisions for minors and data-saving login solutions (Edulog) via Educa.
Submitted text
The Federal Council is asked to answer the following questions:
- What specific measures is the Federal Council planning to strengthen the protection of children and young people in the digital space?
- What steps are being taken to better protect the privacy of minors from data misuse by tech companies?
- How is it ensured that educational institutions have a secure digital infrastructure?
- What lessons can Switzerland learn from the best practices of countries such as Denmark, Australia and Taiwan, which have already introduced measures to contain digital risks?
Justification
Digitalization poses considerable risks for children and young people.
It is crucial to anchor the protection of minors as an integral part of the “Digital Switzerland” strategy.
Targeted measures can ensure that the digital transformation takes place for the benefit of all and that a digital strategy can be implemented and realized in education and health with regard to the practical protection of children and young people.For states and individuals, digital sovereignty means that they can act in a self-determined manner in the digital space.
This is very important for children and young people, as they are a particularly vulnerable group that needs to be protected in the digital space. Switzerland is already pursuing approaches that combine the free movement of data with the protection of sensitive data. It emphasizes that complete control is not desirable, but that a balance between free access and protection is necessary.For children, this means that they not only need to be protected from risks such as cyberbullying or cost traps, but should also be empowered to use digital services in a self-determined way.
The mere introduction of bans in the digital space has proven to be insufficient.
Although bans can minimize risks in the short term, they do not address the causes of the problems.
Preventive measures such as education and information should be at the forefront. Digital skills enable children and young people to better recognize and avoid risks on their own. Restrictive measures without accompanying education are often circumvented or even have a counterproductive effect.
Statement of the Federal Council
1. on April 5, 2023, the Federal Council instructed DETEC to prepare a Consultation draft on the regulation of communication platforms and search engines to be drawn up. The bill is intended to strengthen the rights of all users in Switzerland and demand more transparency and reporting obligations from communication platforms and search engines in order to better assess the impact of their activities on fundamental rights. The consultation draft has been drawn up. The Federal Council has already dealt with it several times and will come to a decision at a later date fall.
Furthermore, on 1.1.2025 the new Federal law on the protection of minors in the areas of film and video games (JSFVG; SR 446.2) came into force. The law also imposes obligations on platform services that make videos or video games accessible to minors and obliges them to carry out age checks and reporting procedures. The law also establishes the national Youth and Media Platform, which aims to promote media literacy among children and young people.
Based on the Postulate Vara 24.4480 “Mental health of adolescents and exposure to social networks. What is being done? ” as well as Graf Maya 24.4592 “Protecting children and young people from harmful social media use” the Federal Council will also examine whether and to what extent age limits for social networks make sense.
2 The Swiss Data Protection Act (DSG, SR 235.1) applies to the processing of personal data. Among other things, it stipulates that personal data may only be obtained for a specific purpose that is recognizable to the data subject. No more data may be used than necessary for the specified purpose (principle of proportionality). As in other areas of the Internet, enforcing Swiss law with international players is a challenge. However, under certain conditions (Art. 14 para. 1 FADP), the Data Protection Act obliges data processors based abroad to designate a representative in Switzerland if they process personal data of persons in Switzerland.
In addition, certain provisions of the new JSFVG (which have not yet entered into force) provide special protection for minors. If the providers of on-demand and platform services collect data from minors, they may only use this data for age verification purposes (Art. 8 para. 3 and Art. 20 para. 3). Fines of up to CHF 40,000 are provided for the intentional use of minors’ data for other purposes (Art. 34 para. 2).
3 – 4 Compulsory education institutions are the responsibility of the cantons. Within the framework of the Conference of Cantonal Ministers of Education (EDK), the Cantons federate their identity servicesto provide educational institutions with a login solution (Edulog) to enable data-saving access to digital services. The EDK and the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) operate the specialist agency Educa (www.educa.ch). It lays the foundations for the Swiss digital education area throughout Switzerland and, in particular, promotes access to and use of digital services for education. Educa has been supporting school management and education administration since July 2022 with a contact point for data use and data protection. The contact point answers technical, legal and ethical questions, for example in connection with the storage of data in the cloud or the disclosure of personal data. Findings from the contact point are incorporated into the development of a data usage policy. Educa also provides schools with useful information and practical tools in the form of the “Data protection-compliant schools” and “Information security in the education system” dossiers. Educa also networks at national and international level with the relevant players in business, research and administration. This networking gives Educa access to best practices and guidance for the further development of the Swiss digital education sector.