Leave them kids alone? Gradual autonomy and the right to privacy in children’s online lives

Abstract This paper investigates the ethical and legal tensions between protecting children online and respecting their autonomy and privacy rights. In the face of increasing digital risks, from algorithmic manipulation to surveillance and data exploitation, governments have enacted sweeping regulatory reforms, often prioritizing safety over agency. While aligned with Article 3 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, such measures frequently neglect Articles 12 and 16, which affirm children’s rights to be heard and to privacy. Drawing on philosophical theories of paternalism, the paper critiques both protectionist and anti-protectionist accounts, arguing they fail to reconcile children‘s vulnerability with their evolving capacities. Instead, it proposes a republican model of paternalism based on Philip Pettit’s theory of non-domination. This approach enables justified, contestable, and developmentally sensitive forms of interference that respect children’s gradual autonomy. By analysing privacy as a precondition for autonomy rather than mere protection, the paper advances a normative foundation for child-centered digital governance.