Age verification tools in the light of the contribution of the Data Protection Authority and AGCOM: the risk of technological and cognitive obsolescence

Abstract

This paper intends to analyse the complex theme of the protection of minors in the context of the activities they carry out online. In particular, starting from the assumption that the presence of minors online is a consolidated reality, the theme of the verification of the age of the minor will be addressed in the light of the regulatory context of reference, in order to identify a possible balance between the need to guarantee access to the so-called “services of the information society” and the need to provide a “strengthened protection” in virtue of the potential risks present on the Net. Specifically, the main measures issued by the Authority for the protection of personal data and by the Authority for the guarantees in communications will be analysed in order to verify the effectiveness of the means available on the subject of age verification.