HUMAN RIGHTS MINING: IS THERE CHILDREN'S RIGHT TO A SAFE DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT?

Abstract

The primary intent of the research is to examine if children can assert their right to a safe digital environment as an autonomous and independent right according to international human rights standards. The aim is to clarify how this concept is currently developed and formed, emphasizing certain key characteristics by examining the responsibilities of States. We are investing in this topic since the pervasiveness of information and communication technology (ICT) has provided children with unprecedented opportunities to learn about their rights. Simultaneously, with the increasing availability of the Internet and digital tools, children are exposed to risks like cyberbullying, privacy breaches, exposure to harmful content, and exploitation. All of those challenges have already been observed from multiple perspectives. However, in contrast to the prevailing focus on children's entitlement to a safe online environment within the security context, we are highlighting the perspective of human rights. The key difference between these legal spheres lies in how they view children's roles. While the security perspective tends to depict children mainly as vulnerable individuals (using a risk-focused approach), the human rights perspective recognizes children as central individuals in realizing their rights (employing a rights-based approach). This divergence in approaches results in different expectations, with the latter emphasizing children's active role in promoting and protecting their rights. Consequently, merging the concepts of 'safe' and 'secure' within the realm of human rights could potentially undermine children's ability to exercise their human rights autonomously, and should be avoided whenever possible. Utilizing this approach, an examination has been conducted to determine whether the entitlement to a safe digital environment could be regarded as an implied right, or if it could be derived from international treaties or secondary legal texts at both universal and regional levels. The findings reveal that children possess the entitlement to a safe digital environment, encompassing well-established substantive and procedural components. The only remaining step is for this right to be acknowledged by an interpreting body.