Brussels, 15th of April 2026
On the 15th of April President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and Executive Vice President Henna Virkkunen issued a joint press conference to provide an update on the EU’s age verification app (also known as “the digital wallet”) that aims to ensure that children cannot access inapproriate content online.
Ursula von der Leyen brought attention to the “extremely worrying” situation of children online with social media algorithms designed to be addictive and the fact that the more time children spend online, the more they are exposed to harmful content. “It is for parents to raise their children and not platforms” she said and highlighted Member States’ efforts in finding solutions to better protect children from digital threats. FAFCE welcomes the idea of a special panel on children’s safety online that has met following the concerns of parents ” who do not have proper solutions to protect their children”. This is in line with FAFCE call for a deeper inclusion of parents and family networks in order to empower parents in their role to prevent, assess and remedy to online risks in the education of their children.
Commission President stressed the need of “a harmonised EU approach” and confirmed that the app that has been tested in France, Greece, Spain, Italy, Denmark and Cyprus is technically ready. According to the Commission it is user friendly, respects highest privacy standards and works on every device leaving no excuses for online platforms to effectively verify users’ age. FAFCE strongly supports the “zero tolerance” policy for platforms that do not respect children’s rights, as their best interest comes before commercial interests.
Executive Vice President Henna Virkkunen Henna Virkunnen mentioned the EU action against TikTok, Facebook and 4 pornographic websites that did not have an effective age verification tool. She recalled that the Digital Services Act also aims at protecting children and ensured that the EU’s age verification app is a tool offered by the European Commission to take another step forward in the coordinated protection of minors online. It can be used as a part of Member States’ national wallets or separately and the European Commission is open to business and innovation.
FAFCE has long been urging for the effective age verification measures and hopes that the Commission’s efforts for “harmonised EU approach” will mitigate the risks of online child sexual abuse and enhance closer cooperation between the governements and civil society organisations (including family associations) on national and European level. Through the advocacy work in Brussels and Strasbourg FAFCE has been calling to protect children from the harmful impact of pornography, as well as to recognise pornography as a public health issue.
For more information of the commitment of FAFCE for ensuring the safety of minors online:
PRESS RELEASE : FAFCE Conference on protecting children from online threats
FAFCE’s Unique Public Intervention at the UN: Protecting Children from Online Pornography
European Child Shield Platform publishes advocacy document
New Council of Europe measures to protect minors from online pornography
The Council of Europe calls to protect children from online pornography
