Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) nations, meeting at the 2026 G7 Summit in Évian, France, have issued a joint call for stronger measures to create a safer digital environment for children and youth under 18, urging governments, technology companies and other stakeholders to prioritize minors’ safety, privacy and well-being online.
The declaration, also supported by G7 partners Brazil, Egypt, India, Kenya and the Republic of Korea, underscores the need for digital platforms to be designed with children’s interests at their core through safety-by-design principles, privacy protections, age-appropriate features and secure default settings.
The leaders said digital technologies offer significant benefits for children and youth by expanding access to education, healthcare, creativity and social connections. They stressed that parents, teachers and educational institutions should equip young people with the skills needed to engage critically and responsibly with digital technologies, media and information.
At the same time, the declaration warned that online services can expose minors to illegal and age-inappropriate content, harmful interactions and features designed to maximize attention and engagement, potentially leading to compulsive or habit-forming behaviour.
The leaders called for recommendation systems to promote age-appropriate content while reducing exposure to harmful material. They also urged digital service providers to empower parents and young users through easy-to-use parental controls, protective default settings and stronger risk assessment and mitigation measures.
The declaration called on digital platforms to develop technologies that ensure safe, secure and age-appropriate online experiences, including effective age-assurance mechanisms that protect user privacy and comply with national laws and regulatory frameworks.
The leaders highlighted growing concerns surrounding the use of conversational artificial intelligence by children and youth, noting that while AI presents opportunities for innovation, education and development, it can also pose risks to well-being and safety. They urged AI providers to implement default safety settings, parental controls and age-assurance tools to make AI systems safer for minors.
Recognizing the increasing prevalence of AI-generated content, the declaration emphasized the importance of helping children and youth distinguish authentic content from synthetic material. The leaders supported ongoing industry efforts to improve content provenance, transparency and digital literacy.
The leaders said they remained strongly committed to prohibiting the generation, manipulation and distribution of child sexual abuse material and criminal activity related to non-consensual intimate imagery, including deepfakes involving children and young people. They said digital service providers must implement effective detection and removal measures on their platforms, adding that the prohibition of such content, as well as online grooming, sexual exploitation and sexual extortion, remained a non-negotiable principle in the development and deployment of artificial intelligence systems and digital services. The statement added that some of these harms, including non-consensual intimate imagery and sexualized content, could disproportionately affect girls and young women, affect boys and young men, and encourage self-harm.
The leaders also pledged to prevent and counter children’s exposure to violent extremism, terrorism and organized crime online, encouraging closer cooperation between technology companies and law enforcement agencies.
The declaration stressed the importance of research, evidence-based policymaking and international cooperation in understanding the impact of digital services and AI on children and youth. G7 ministers were tasked with monitoring progress and assessing implementation efforts by the end of the year.
The call reflects discussions among G7 members and partner countries aimed at developing coordinated approaches to ensure a safer and more secure digital environment for minors worldwide.