The Internet is becoming more important in our culture, especially with children and young people who do their homework and spend a lot of time on social networks. The Internet provides a considerable number of opportunities for the development of a child. However, young Internet users may find themselves in difficult situations or be exposed to risks in the online space. That is why Kazakhstan is taking steps to ensure the safety of children online.
So, in September 2020, the Head of State sent a message to the people “Kazakhstan in a New Reality: Time for Action” and gave a number of instructions to the Government to take measures to protect citizens, especially children, from cyberbullying. This served as the basis for making changes and additions to a number of legislative acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on the protection of the rights of children, education, information and informatization.
Due to the acute urgency of the issue of child online protection, a study was conducted and a report “Kazakhstan: Protecting Children Online” was prepared, which contains an overview of the current situation, as well as recommendations for government agencies and industry organizations to create a safer Internet environment for children. The study was conducted in accordance with the ITU Child Online Protection Guidelines and taking into account General Comment No. 25 “Children's rights in relation to the digital environment” of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child. In total, 97 respondents from 26 government agencies and 17 organizations and companies took part in the study. The report includes an analysis of the collected data and recommendations in the field of protecting the rights of children and ensuring their safety online, as well as proposals for improving policy and regulatory measures in order to create conditions for the development of the ICT industry.
The authorities of Kazakhstan can use this report to review their data collection approaches and ongoing measures in the field of child online protection, to address gaps, and to further improve policy and regulation in this area.
Among the recommendations that are prepared as a result of the study for government authorities: the development of a national strategy for the protection of children online; introduction of universal systemic child protection mechanisms; more thorough identification of cases of violence and harm to children on the Internet, the inclusion of the issue of digital literacy and the basics of safe use of the Internet in school curricula.
For industry organizations in Kazakhstan, this report can contribute to the development of new standards, approaches, tools and innovative solutions for the safe and secure use of Internet services and other technologies by children.
Recommendations from the study for the industry include the provision of parental control programs and dissemination of information about the importance of their use; closer cooperation with government and law enforcement agencies, civil society representatives and hotlines in order to effectively resolve issues caused by CSAM (Child Sexual Abuse Material - “materials describing the sexual abuse of children”); prohibition of uploading, publishing, transmitting, sharing or making available to the public access to content that violates the rights of children.
You can download summary of the report "Kazakhstan. Child online protection" here.
You can download the report "Kazakhstan. Child online protection" here.
