Children’s personal information on the web

Children get to know one another and make new friends in online discussions, so the aim is not to conceal all information about yourself. Information that should be particularly protected in online discussions includes the type of personal information that can be used for identifying a person or revealing his or her contact information. People can also be identified by combining various pieces of information (e.g. name of school, sports club, city or town).

In addition to contact information, you should also exercise caution when revealing other types of personal information. Private matters that you reveal or pictures that you send to a stranger may quickly end up on the internet for all to see. Things that you write in your online blog become truly public and can often be read for years to come. Once posted online, a piece of text or photograph can be easily copied to various locations, and may ultimately be impossible to delete.

Registration

Many websites ask users to register or otherwise provide their personal information. In exchange for this personal information, the websites offer access to the service, participation in a sweepstake, free products or the opportunity to participate in discussions. Commercial actors also assemble children and adolescents’ contact information for marketing purposes.

Tips

It is advisable to arrive at some agreement with children on providing personal information on the web. If the child is given permission to provide his or her personal information, the parent should be aware for which services this information is provided.

Parents should check that the service in question features a register specification or privacy policy that should indicate the party in charge of managing personal information and the purpose for which this information is processed, as well as to whom this information is regularly provided and how the protection of this information is ensured. Moreover, the register administrator must provide information on the registered person’s rights and their use.

It is usually unnecessary to provide more than the required information for these services. It must also be indicated in connection with the registration whether the personal information will be provided for direct marketing purposes. Registering persons have the right to prohibit their information from being released for this purpose.

Updated 26.11.2008