“ECA Digital”: Digital Statute for Children and Adolescents will take effect on March 17, 2026

Established by Law No. 15,211/2025, the Digital Statute of Children and Adolescents (ECA Digital) will enter into force on March 17, 2026.

The new statute establishes a regulatory framework for protecting children and adolescents in digital environments in Brazil. It applies to any information technology product or service intended for or likely to be accessed by minors, regardless of where the product or service has been developed, sold, or operated.

Key obligations imposed on providers of digital products and services accessible to children and adolescents include:

• Adopting protective default settings (safety-by-default);
• Implementing reliable age verification mechanisms;
• Offering parental supervision tools;
• Restricting targeted advertising based on profiling;
• Banning the use of loot boxes in games aimed at children and adolescents;
• Removing content involving exploitation or violence against minors and reporting; and
• Meeting transparency and reporting obligations when serving a large user base of underage users.

Enforcement of the Digital ECA may involve different public authorities, such as the Brazilian National Data Protection Agency (ANPD), particularly if the statutory obligations concern the processing of children’s and adolescents’ personal data.

Applicable sanctions may include warnings, fines, and other administrative penalties provided for in ECA Digital, without prejudice to the application of penalties under the Brazilian General Data Protection Law (LGPD) for separate personal data processing violations, in accordance with the right to the due process of law and the prohibition on double jeopardy.

Demarest’s Data, Privacy & Cybersecurity, Dispute Resolution, and Consumer and Retail teams remain available to provide further clarification.