Cybersecurity Policy Report, G7 Officials Prioritize Children’s Privacy, Cross-Border Collaboration, (Jun 20, 2025)
Data protection authorities (DPAs) from the U.S. and its Group of Seven (G7) allies are highlighting the need to cooperate on cross-border enforcement of privacy laws, particularly laws designed to protect children.
“Use of the Internet and new technologies is near-ubiquitous among children in G7 countries,” the G7 DPAs said in a joint statement yesterday following two days’ of meetings in Canada.
“Though they have grown up in a world of modern technologies, children remain particularly vulnerable to their associated harms. They may be susceptible to deceptive design practices, or simply may not understand their rights or the consequences of certain data processing, highlighting the need for careful design that makes that exploration safe,” they said.
“Children want and are entitled to be active digital citizens and they deserve tailored and strong privacy protections which consider their best interests and allow them to fully participate in the digital world,” they said.
“Specific requirements with respect to designing, developing or deploying technologies that are used by or otherwise affect children will vary by jurisdiction. However, we emphasize that the protection of children’s best interests as a primary consideration is a key element of responsible innovation,” they added.
A communiqué from the group noted that the Federal Trade Commission and Japan’s Personal Information Protection Commission were leading an Enforcement Cooperation Working Group that aims to develop “an enforcement case sharing format that enables G7 DPAs to identify common strategic issues, problems and reasonable solutions that need to be addressed by sharing of appropriate information related to prospective or ongoing investigations, enforcement outcomes and best practices among G7 DPAs.”
“In the digital age, protecting privacy requires global coordination,” Philippe Dufresne, Canada’s privacy commissioner and host of the meeting, said in a news release.
“Sharing knowledge and expertise, jointly examining emerging issues, and working together to advance common standards can provide greater consistency for organizations operating across multiple jurisdictions,” Mr. Dufresne added.
The G7 DPAs’ meeting followed a meeting of G7 leaders in Canada that began Sunday and ended Tuesday. The G7 consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with the participation of the European Union.
News: InternationalLegislation DataPrivacy