UAE Child Digital Safety Law: Seven Legal Duties Parents Must Follow When Their Children Go Online

Monitoring a child’s social media and online activity in the UAE is no longer just a matter of good parenting -- it is now a legal duty.

Under the Child Digital Safety Law, parents, guardians and others legally responsible for a child are required to play an active role in supervising and managing children’s digital use. The law goes beyond default app settings, placing clear obligations on caregivers to protect, guide and educate children in online spaces.

Federal Decree-Law No. (26) of 2025 on Child Digital Safety, which came into force on January 1, 2026, sets out specific responsibilities for “child caregivers”, a term that includes parents, guardians and anyone entrusted with a child’s care and safety.

Key legal obligations for caregivers include:

Caregivers must supervise children’s digital activities, using parental control tools to prevent access to harmful content while allowing age-appropriate independence.

They must ensure children only use digital platforms suitable for their age, and must not create or allow accounts on platforms that lack adequate child protection controls. Children must also not share others’ accounts or view age-inappropriate content.

Caregivers are prohibited from displaying, promoting or exploiting children online in ways that violate privacy or dignity, harm psychological or social wellbeing, or expose children to bullying.

They must protect children’s personal data in line with the Decree-Law, its implementing decisions and other applicable privacy legislation.

Caregivers are required to educate children on safe and responsible digital use, including the psychological, behavioural and health risks of excessive or unsafe online activity.

Any exposure to harmful content or child sexual abuse material must be reported immediately to the relevant authorities.

Caregivers must also comply with any additional duties set out under the law or its implementing regulations.

The law also places responsibilities on the Ministry and other competent authorities to develop programmes and mechanisms to ensure caregivers comply with these obligations.

What is considered harmful content?


Harmful content is broadly defined and includes written, audio, visual or digital material — from social media posts and videos to advertisements and creative works — that may negatively affect a child’s moral, psychological or social values, or breach UAE media content standards.

Parental control tools explained


Parental control tools include features such as linking parent and child accounts, monitoring app use, setting screen-time limits, managing privacy settings and blocking inappropriate content. These are available on major platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube, as well as through tools like Apple Screen Time and Google Family Link.

How to report harmful content


Harmful or inappropriate content should first be reported to the platform where it appears. Caregivers can also report concerns to UAE authorities, including the Ministry of Interior’s Child Protection Centre via helpline 116111, or through the Dubai Police app’s Child Protection service.

 

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