In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court of India declared that access to the internet is a fundamental right guaranteed to every individual, including children, under Article 21 (Right to Life and Personal Liberty) and Article 19(1)(a) (Freedom of Speech and Expression) of the Constitution.
Rejecting calls for a blanket age-based ban on internet usage, the apex court emphasized that safeguarding children from online harms must not come at the expense of their constitutional freedoms.
Freedom and Safety: “Not at Odds with Each Other”
A bench comprising Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice K.V. Chandran passed the landmark order during the hearing of a plea filed by the child rights NGO Just Rights for Children Alliance. The petitioners highlighted serious lapses by social media platforms in detecting and reporting Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Material (CSEAM).
Refusing to impose sweeping digital bans on minors, the bench observed:
”Our children, irrespective of their age, enjoy the same rights, and to deny the same altogether would be as absurd as saying children below a certain age do not have a conscience worth protecting or a freedom of speech worth expressing. The safety of our children and their freedom are not at odds with each other. Our children are entitled to both.”
The court noted that for millions of children—especially those in remote regions or children with special needs—the internet serves as an indispensable tool for education, self-expression, and community. Banning access, the bench noted, misidentifies the victim as the problem instead of targeting the perpetrators and negligent platforms.
Action Plan to Eliminate CSEAM
To combat the proliferation of illicit content online without curbing digital access, the Supreme Court mandated key technical and policy interventions:
- National CSEAM Database: The Centre has been directed to establish a centralized digital database featuring unique digital identifiers (hashes) and URLs of confirmed abusive material to enable swift cross-platform removal.
- Mandatory ‘Child Mode’ Controls: Social media platforms must implement strict parental controls, account privacy defaults, restricted messaging from unknown adults, and curated content settings tailored for young users.
- Platform Due Diligence: Tech intermediaries must adopt standard operating procedures, including perceptual hash-matching technology, to proactively eliminate non-consensual exploitative content.
- Digital Literacy & Helpline Integration: The court recommended incorporating age-appropriate digital safety and online ethics into school curricula while displaying emergency contact details, such as the Child Helpline (1098) and Cyber Crime Helpline (1930), across educational institutions.
The Union Government has been instructed to frame standard operating procedures and suggest necessary amendments to the Information Technology Rules, with a compliance report due before the court on December 10, 2026.
