The Digital Statute for Children and Adolescents (Digital ECA) is the new Brazilian rule for the protection of minors on the internet. Enacted in 2025, it came into effect in March 2026 with the goal of increasing the safety of young people on online platforms.

Among other measures, the statute requires companies to verify the age of users, adopt content moderation systems, and implement monitoring tools.

Furthermore, it establishes that digital responsibility is shared; platforms, families, society, and the state must protect young people. The idea behind the new measures is to prevent practices that encourage screen addiction, sexualization, and other digital risks.

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Digital ECA: a brief explanation

The Digital ECA (Statute #15,211/2025) emerged after years of debate, driven in part by reports of child exploitation on the internet.

Nicknamed the 'Felca Statute', in reference to the influencer who reported the adultification of minors on social media, the statute provides comprehensive guidelines on the rights of children and adolescents in the online world.

It is important to highlight that it does not replace the 1990 Statute for Children and Adolescents (ECA) but extends its protections to the digital environment.

Among the key requirements, the Digital ECA stipulates that platforms must adopt reliable age verification systems to prevent children from accessing inappropriate content.  

In case of non-compliance, fines of up to 10% of national revenue, capped at BRL 50 million, are foreseen, along with the potential suspension or prohibition of operations in Brazil.

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What the Digital ECA prohibits and why

The Digital ECA prohibits the use of practices that could manipulate young audiences through the features of these platforms. The statute explains that such features exploit children's vulnerability to keep them online for longer periods.  

In official legal documents, endless scrolling, urgent notifications, and obstacles to deleting accounts are just a few of the practices being curbed.

As the government explains in official documents, the goal of the Digital ECA is also to curb “deceptive patterns” that create a false sense of urgency or dependence.

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Deceptive platform design

Known as deceptive design patterns, these strategies exploit human behavior and emotional triggers to influence decisions and prolong service usage.

Some examples include “cute”-looking interfaces in children's games and persistent notifications in apps. In general, these are features that exploit the digital and emotional vulnerability of children and adolescents to keep them online for longer.

In a statement to CNN Brasil, Douglas Leite, platform specialist and technology partner at Licks Attorneys, states that this type of digital architecture can exploit characteristics of human behavior, such as the tendency toward repetition and the search for constant stimuli.

"In the online environment, this scales even further because the interface can combine design, personalization, and real-time recommendations. A point of concern, especially from a regulatory standpoint, arises when these mechanisms begin to operate more intensely on vulnerable groups, such as children and adolescents,” Leite explains.

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Autoplay or automatic video playback

• What it is: Autoplay is the automatic playback of videos, which starts the next piece of content as soon as the current one ends. This feature is present in apps like YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok, making browsing seamless and continuous for the user.

• Negative effect: by removing the need for user action, such as clicking “play,” autoplay can increase screen time and make it harder to take breaks. The Digital ECA aims to limit automatic playback for children and adolescents on streaming platforms.
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Infinite scrolling/infinite feed

• What it is: Infinite scrolling (or infinite feed) continuously loads more content as the user scrolls down the page. It is highly common on social media and makes new posts appear without requiring the user to click “see more”.

• Negative effect: this infinite loop eliminates natural browsing pauses, holding the user's attention for longer. In the regulatory materials, infinite scrolling appears as one of the main examples of deceptive practices that the Digital ECA seeks to restrict.
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Urgent notifications

• What it is: these are alerts sent by platforms with a false sense of urgency to lure the user back. For example, notifications such as “your friend is waiting” are used to encourage users to return to the app.

• Negative effect: these alerts create a false sense of urgency, pressuring children and adolescents to access the service immediately.
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Rewards for usage time

• What it is: these are mechanics in which the user receives “rewards,” such as virtual gifts, prizes, or points. It is a form of platform gamification.

• Negative effect: the user becomes more inclined to continue browsing in the expectation of receiving a new “prize”.
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Privacy controls and parental supervision

• What it is: many platforms intentionally hide or complicate access to privacy and parental control settings. For example, they require clicking through “hidden” menus to adjust time limits, block content, or activate security filters.

• Negative effect: this makes it much more difficult for parents to control what content is appropriate for children and adolescents. Therefore, the new statute requires apps to offer intuitive parental supervision and privacy tools for parents and guardians.
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Challenges in implementing the Digital ECA

The enforcement of the Digital ECA is expected to face significant technical challenges in applying the new rules. This is because some requirements, such as age verification mechanisms, still depend on technological solutions that raise questions about their effectiveness, proportionality, and privacy.

Furthermore, each online service operates in a different way, with varying features and risk levels, making it difficult to adopt a one-size-fits-all guideline.

According to Leite, another major challenge will be transforming the statute’s obligations into clear criteria for monitoring and compliance. In his view, simply creating the rule is not enough; it will also be necessary to define how it will be enforced in each digital environment.

"Platforms undoubtedly play a significant role, but the effectiveness of the rule also depends on digital literacy, awareness, and the proper use of available protection tools. Ultimately, the challenge is not just to enforce the statute, but to ensure that it produces concrete protection,” concludes Leite.

*Translation by Licks Attorneys. This content is available on the CNN.
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