N. 2 (2025)
Dossier - Adolescenti nell’epoca della trasformazione digitale: un approccio sociologico, normativo e culturale

Minors in the Digital Society: Age Verification, Deepfakes, and Disinformation: Some Considerations on Law and Informatics

pdf (Italiano)
Giovanni Ziccardi
University of Milan
DOI: https://doi.org/10.54103/1972-5760/30050

Published 2025-11-11

Keywords

  • age verification,
  • child protection,
  • digital disinformation,
  • deepfake,
  • generative artificial intelligence

How to Cite

Ziccardi, G. (2025). Minors in the Digital Society: Age Verification, Deepfakes, and Disinformation: Some Considerations on Law and Informatics. Sociologia Del Diritto, 52(2). https://doi.org/10.54103/1972-5760/30050

Copyright (c) 2025 Giovanni Ziccardi

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Abstract

This article addresses the protection of minors in the digital society, focusing on age verification systems, deepfakes, exposure to disinformation, chatbots, and AI tools. The aim is to identify legal, technological, and social challenges, proposing an integrated response that safeguards minors’ rights without undermining thoseof other users.

The analysis adopts a multidisciplinary legal and informatics approach, examining European and Italian legal sources (including GDPR, Digital Services Act, AGCOM regulations), EDPB documents, and case studies (TikTok, Replika, Europol’s Operation Cumberland). The article combines theoretical reflections with practical examples, drawing from educational, psychological, and technological domains, using both descriptive and normative arguments.

This contribution advocates for a systemic approach to online minor protection, structured around three dimensions: regulatory, technological, and educational. on the regulatory level, the article recommends strengthening age verification requirements, updating legal definitions of prohibited contents, and ensuring consistent enforcement. Technologically, it calls for the implementation of “privacy by design” solutions and algorithmic transparency. Finally, critical digital and media literacy education must be promoted in schools and families. The involvement of all stakeholders – public authorities, tech companies, educators, and families – is key to foster a fair and safe digital environment for younger generations.

pdf (Italiano)

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

  1. Betton, V., Woollard, J., (2018), Teen Mental Health in an Online World: Supporting Young People around their Use of Social Media, Apps, Gaming, Texting and the Rest, London, Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
  2. Bianda, E., (2019), Riconoscimento facciale e capitalismo della sorveglianza, in Problemi dell’informazione, 2, pp. 400-400, DOI 10.1445/94261.
  3. Biolcati, R., (2010), La vita online degli adolescenti: tra sperimentazione e rischio, in Psicologia clinica dello sviluppo, 41 (2), pp. 267-298.
  4. Biolcati, R., Cani, D., Badio, E., (2013), Adolescenti e Facebook: la gestione online della privacy, in Psicologia clinica dello sviluppo, 2013, 51 (3), pp. 449-478.
  5. Blake, P., (2019), Age verification for online porn: more harm than good? in Porn studies, 6 (2), pp. 228-237.
  6. Caggiano, I.A., (2022) Protecting minors as technologically vulnerable persons through data protection: An analysis on the effectiveness of law, in European Journal of Privacy Law & Technologies, 1, pp. 27-44.
  7. Cantero Gamito, M., (2023), Do Too Many Cooks Spoil the Broth? How EU Law Underenforcement Allows TikTok’s Violations of Minors’ Rights, in Journal of consumer policy, 46 (3), pp. 281-305.
  8. Carr, N. (2025), Superbloom. Le tecnologie di connessione ci separano?, Milano, Cortina.
  9. Frigato, P., (20121), Capitalismo della sorveglianza e fallimento del modello di mercato, in Sociologia del lavoro, 159, pp. 270-28.
  10. Gallese, V., Moriggi, S., Rivoltella, P.C., (2025), Oltre la tecnofobia. Il digitale dalle neuroscienze all’educazione, Milano, Cortina.
  11. Garaci, I., (2023), The child’s right to privacy in the family context, in European Journal of Privacy Law & Technologies, 1, pp. 84-99.
  12. Ghiglia, A. (2023), Educazione civica digitale. Abbecedario essenziale, Rimini, Maggioli.
  13. Lancini, M., (2025), Chiamami adulto. Come stare in relazione con gli adolescenti, Milano, Cortina.
  14. Li, J., (2025), Reflection on data right protection for minors in the digital age, in Children and youth services review, 170 (5): 108167, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2025.108167.
  15. Macenaite, M., Kosta, E., (2017), Consent for processing children’s personal data in the EU: following in US footsteps?, in Information & communications technology law, 26 (2), pp. 146-197.
  16. Murgo, C., (2024), L’identità personale dei minori, tra responsabilità genitoriale e capacità di autodeterminarsi, in European Journal of Privacy Law & Technologies, 2, pp. 115-128.
  17. Nagel, D. (2011-12), Beware of the Virtual Doll: ISPs and the Protection of Personal Data of Minors, in Philosophy & technology, 24 (4), pp. 411-418.
  18. Pasquale, L., Zippo, P., Curley, C., O’Neill, B., Mongiello, M., (2022), Digital Age of Consent and Age Verification: Can They Protect Children?, in IEEE software, 39 (3), pp. 50-57.
  19. Pasta, S., Rivoltella P.C., (2022), a cura di, Crescere onlife. L’educazione civica digitale progettata da 74 insegnanti-autori, Brescia, Scholé-Morcelliana.
  20. Pesci, G., (2024), Educazione civica e cittadinanza digitale. Percorsi educativi nella società dell’informazione, Milano, Giuffrè.
  21. Savonardo, L., Marino, R., (2021), Adolescenti always on. Social media, web reputation e rischi online, Milano, FrancoAngeli.
  22. Scalzaretto, S., (2023), Minori e disabilità nell’era dello sharenting. Il “diritto ad un futuro aperto” come criterio per una valutazione etica, in Medicina e morale, 72 (2), pp. 191-206.
  23. Slavtcheva-Petkova, V. (2023), Young People, Media and Politics in the Digital Age, Routledge, DOI: 10.4324/9781003201632.
  24. Stardust, Z., Obeid, A., McKee, A., Angus, D., (2024), Mandatory age verification for pornography access: Why it can’t and won’t ‘save the children’, in Big data & society, 11 (2), DOI: 10.1177/20539517241252129.
  25. Talley, V.A.M., (2021), Major Flaws in Minor Laws: Improving Data Privacy Rights and Protections for Children Under the GDPR, in Indiana international & comparative law review, 30 (1), pp. 127-162.
  26. Viola, J.K., (2021), Young People’s Civic Identity in the Digital Age, Cham, Springer Nature Switzerland AG, 2021.
  27. Yar, M., (2020), Protecting children from internet pornography? A critical assessment of statutory age verification and its enforcement in the UK, in Policing : an international journal of police strategies & management, 43 (1), pp. 183-197.
  28. Zalk, N. van, Monks, C.P., (2020), eds., Online Peer Engagement in Adolescence: Positive and Negative Aspects of Online Social Interaction, New York, Routledge.
  29. Zuboff, S., (2019), Il capitalismo della sorveglianza: il futuro dell’umanità nell’era dei nuovi poteri, Roma: LUISS University Press.