Personal data

• Although it improves as they grow older, children and teenagers remain limited in their ability to spot fake news. And at a time when AI-driven disinformation and deepfakes are increasingly sophisticated, they are particularly vulnerable on social networks, which facilitate the spread of this content via communities of users with similar opinions that stifle healthy debate.
• Educational workshops in Scotland, a wide range of research projects (notably at Orange), programmes like #ForGoodConnections that inform parents and children, and recent French legislation that bans under-15s from using social media: solutions are emerging but how effective are they?
• Calling for more than just technical progress, Orange researcher Erwan Le Quentrec argues that young people need to develop a critical awareness to enable them cope with today’s digital environments.