Prince Harry Urges Social Media Firms to Make Online Safety a Priority for Children

Prince Harry has appealed to social media companies to do more to protect children online, telling an audience at the European Parliament that young people “deserve to feel safe wherever they are.” Speaking in Brussels, he called on platforms to build safety into their products from the start, rather than responding only after harm occurs. The Duke of Sussex appeared with his wife, Meghan, and Sandra Spitaels, whose 15-year-old son Glenn died by suicide in 2017 after an image of him was posted online. Harry said he was speaking as a father, not as an expert or politician, and argued that children should be able to use the internet to find friendships, interests and communities where they feel understood. He also urged technology companies to apply the same standards to other people’s children that they would want for their own. Harry said there had been “significant progress” in the past year in families’ efforts to hold major companies to account, but insisted that greater transparency and stronger safeguards were still needed. The prince described how some grieving parents, according to his remarks, have waited years to access a child’s phone and information that might help explain what happened. He questioned whether companies’ privacy policies should prevent families from obtaining such information and said prevention must begin before an app reaches a child’s device. Meghan accompanied Harry to Belgium but did not deliver the keynote address she had been expected to give. The article says she stepped back because she was “not strong enough emotionally.” The couple have previously backed online safety measures and met with families affected by online harms, the report notes.