DPDP Act, 2023
Children's Online Safety: The Existing Central Framework
India already has a central law addressing children's data protection and online safety — the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.
- Section 9, DPDP Act: Data fiduciaries (including social media platforms) must obtain verifiable parental consent before processing the personal data of any child (person below 18 years).
- Section 9 also prohibits platforms from tracking, monitoring, profiling, or directing targeted advertising at children.
- DPDP Rules, 2025: Require platforms to implement age verification mechanisms and parental consent workflows before onboarding users below 18.
- The DPDP Act thus creates a consent-based protection framework for all under-18s — broader than Karnataka's proposed 16-year cutoff.
- Enforcement under DPDP Act: Data Protection Board of India (DPBI) — a central body with penalty powers (up to ₹250 crore for serious violations).
- Critically, DPDP Act's mechanism is consent-and-verification, not a blanket ban — it does not prohibit children from using social media entirely, only requires verifiable parental consent and prohibits data exploitation.
● Tracked since March 06, 2026 · last seen August 07, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
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