5rights

97%

of children aged 3 to 17 years old went online

1 in 3

internet users are children

8h 39m

the daily average screen time of 13 to 18-year-olds

The problem

Digital products and services curate almost all aspects of children’s lives, but they are designed for profit, not children’s wellbeing. Today, one in two under 18s struggles with addiction to digital devices; harassment, eating disorders, suicide and online sexual abuse are soaring.

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“The more time you use social media the more addicted you are and there is no control over it.”

Sarah, 13

“I believe that when young people collate all their ideas, something amazing can happen”

Alejandro, 12

The solution

Children’s rights and needs must be at the heart of digital design and development. Tech companies must be held accountable for ensuring their products and services cater for children and young people by design and default.

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Our impact

Working for and with young people, 5Rights has successfully set the agenda, delivered the evidence, shaped the needed policy, legislation and technical tools, and worked with companies to demonstrate that redesigning services for children is possible, profitable and can benefit all.

“I imagine that the digital world in the 22nd century will be advanced, brilliant and safe for all children to use effectively and creatively”

Aisha, 16

The digital world was not designed for children. But it can be. Take action with us today for a better tomorrow.

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Advancing Trust & Safety

Our new report provides a comprehensive look at the state of Trust & Safety as a profession and the structural barriers that inhibit their work. We need Trust & Safety teams that have the authority, resources, and independence to create a safer digital environment for all users.

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Twisted Toys

Imagine if traditional toys carried the same harms for children as the digital world. This provocative and darkly humourous advertising campaign brings to life the reality of the exploitation, surveillance and danger that children face online.

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Pathways: How digital design puts children at risk

5Rights’ pioneering avatar research lays bear how the commercial objectives of digital companies translate into design features that impact on children. The results are alarming and upsetting.

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A child sitting in front of a screen, possibly representing a tablet or computer, with a beam of light shining on their face. In front of the screen is a conveyor belt filled with various symbols, including angry faces, skulls, warning signs, and other negative icons, symbolizing harmful or overwhelming content being consumed digitally. The illustration conveys a message about the dangers or challenges of navigating online spaces.

Disrupted Childhood: The cost of persuasive design

First published in 2018 and updated in 2023, this game-changing report examines the persuasive design features and strategies common to popular digital products and services, and their impact on children’s social, mental and physical development.

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Illustration of a young girl, viewed from behind, carrying a heavy load of school supplies and other items. She is dressed in a school uniform with a blue backpack. The items she carries seem to weigh her down, making her appear burdened. Behind her, there is a shadow of herself depicted in a more carefree, joyful pose, holding a kite.

Risky-by-design

This interactive microsite examines common design features that create risk for children, in a series of short and accessible case studies.

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Child Online Safety Toolkit

This hands-on, comprehensive how-to guide provides a practical roadmap and tools for policy-makers to implement children’s rights in the digital environment.

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Digital Futures for Children research centre

This 5Rights-LSE joint centre delivers and provides a global hub for cutting-edge research on current and emerging issues related to children’s rights in the digital environment.

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Tech This Out! Youth voice podcast

Young minds and voices take centre stage in this 5Rights podcast series about the design of the digital world.

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Latest

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UNCRC turns 35: AI moves fast, but it must not break children

18 Mar 2025

News
AI
Global

UNCRC turns 35: AI moves fast, but it must not break children

AI is shaping children’s lives, but is it safe? The Children & AI Design Code sets standards to ensure AI supports, not exploits, the next generation.

A classroom setting with a group of children engaging with digital technology. Two girls sit at a table in the foreground; one in a plaid shirt is holding a smartphone with a red cover, while the other in a white jacket is focused on her own smartphone. The table has school supplies, including a notebook and markers. In the background, three boys are sitting on a desk, interacting with tablets and smartphones. The scene is well-lit, with natural light streaming through large windows.

17 Mar 2025

News
Online Harms
Services
United Kingdom

UK Online Safety Act takes effect as tech industry keeps shifting blame to parents

As the Illegal Harms Code of Practice enters into force, 5Rights urges Ofcom to begin robust enforcement and hold tech firms accountable.

Two women smiling as one hands another an egg-shaped clear glass with a royal blue squared-glass base award. They are visibly on a stage with a Rights Con 25 banner across the top of the stage.

25 Feb 2025

News
Child Rights
Data Protection
Global

5Rights awarded inaugural Privacy and Human Rights Award

Today at RightsCon in Taipei, 5Rights has been recognised for its remarkable leadership on the intersection of privacy, data protection and children’s rights.

A group of children sit on the porch playing on digital devices. A young boy is on the left, playing on an iPad. A slightly older girl sits in the middle, on a phone, smiling at the screen, and the eldest, but still a young girl with plats, sits side on, cross-legged, holding and smiling at an iPad. There is a very positive mood to the photo.

11 Feb 2025

News
Child Rights
Global

5Rights celebrates Safer Internet Day 2025

Safer Internet Day is beyond a celebration. From Dublin to Manila, we’re calling for children’s rights to be respected by design and default.

A better web for children can be a better web for us all, but it requires a thoughtful approach. 5Rights understands this better than anyone and is doing a brilliant job making the case for action.

— Adrian Lovett, CEO World Wide Web Foundation

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“5Rights’ expertise was invaluable to the creation of standards to help the technology industry design their digital products and services with children in mind.”

— Sophia A. Muirhead, Executive Director of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

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“We are grateful for the support of 5Rights in contributing to our work in the development of the African Union Child Online Safety and Empowerment Policy in line with international best practices.”

— Amani Abou-Zeid, African Union Commissioner

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“5Rights did a wonderful job creating proactical tools for policy makers, the tech sector, and involving children too.”

— Mikiko Otani, Chair of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child

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Building the digital world that young people deserve

The problem

The solution

Our impact

Join our Youth Ambassadors Programme!