News release

Privacy Commissioner of Canada hosts international symposium on youth privacy in a digital age; launches Youth Advisory Council

June 20, 2025 – Ottawa, Ontario

Privacy Commissioner of Canada Philippe Dufresne today welcomed Canadian youth leaders, academics, senior government leaders, civil society representatives, industry stakeholders, and data protection authorities from around the world for a symposium aimed at exploring key issues related to the protection of children’s privacy, now and into the future.

In his opening remarks, Commissioner Dufresne also announced the launch of a Youth Advisory Council to help inform efforts by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) to better protect the privacy of young people in the digital age.

The aim of the Youth Advisory Council is to create a space for young people to share their insights, experiences, and ideas on the privacy challenges that matter most to them.

The symposium – entitled “Youth Privacy in a Digital Age” – was organized to explore issues ranging from data privacy from the perspective of teens, the impacts of artificial intelligence on young people, deceptive design, educational technologies, and the best interests of the child in the digital space.

In the spirit of ensuring that young people are part of conversations that impact them, the symposium featured a panel with Commissioner Dufresne hearing from several young people about their privacy experiences and concerns.

Among the symposium’s attendees were members of the G7 Data Protection and Privacy Authorities Roundtable, who met this week in the National Capital Region in the context of Canada’s 2025 G7 presidency.

The protection of children online is a recurring theme for the international group. A statement following this year’s meetings called for responsible innovation, which involves building safety and privacy into the design of new technologies and services and considering any special protections that may be required to act in the best interests of children. At last year’s meeting, G7 DPA members released a statement on AI and children.

Commissioner Dufresne has identified championing children’s privacy rights as one of his strategic priorities.

Earlier this year, Commissioner Dufresne announced that the OPC was conducting an exploratory consultation to help inform the development of a children’s privacy code aimed at strengthening the protection of young people’s personal information in the digital world. Submissions will be accepted until August 5, 2025.

Quotes

“Young people must be part of the conversation to identify solutions to the issues that they are facing in their day-to-day lives. Their voices will play an important role in deepening our understanding of how these issues impact young people which will help to inform our efforts so that they can have the most impact.”

“Children deserve to be children, even in the digital realm, free from deceptive practices and with the freedom to navigate online spaces securely. We want organizations to respect children’s privacy rights and to design services and products with strong protections for the personal information of children.”

Philippe Dufresne
Privacy Commissioner of Canada

Quick facts

• Young people between the ages of 13 and 17 are invited to apply to become members of the Youth Advisory Council by July 31, 2025. Ideal candidates should be passionate about technology, data protection, the future of the digital world, and helping their communities, as well as comfortable sharing their thoughts with both peers and adults.
• The Privacy Commissioner released the results of an online survey of parents and teachers in May 2025. The survey found that the vast majority of parents worry about their children’s online privacy. In fact, two-thirds or more are moderately to extremely concerned, with 45% highly concerned about risks to their child from the use or misuse of their personal information.
• 42% of parents are highly concerned about the amount of information that companies collect about their children, and almost half (45%) do not have much trust in companies to protect that information – 29% report having no trust at all.
• Only 19% of teachers think that students understand the long-term consequences of posting material online.

Related links

• Youth Advisory Council – Call for applications
• Video: Commissioner Dufresne invites applications to the OPC Youth Advisory Council
• 2024-2025 Public opinion research on privacy issues
• OPC strategic privacy priorities

Media contact

Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
communications@priv.gc.ca