On the need for targeted criminal provisions and platforms’ responsibility to effectively address cyberbullying and online harassment

B100207/2026

European Parliament resolution on the need for targeted criminal provisions and platforms’ responsibility to effectively address cyberbullying and online harassment

(2026/2693(RSP))

The European Parliament,

– having regard to question for oral answer O-000018/2026 to the Commission on the need for targeted criminal provisions on cyberbullying and online harassment and platforms’ responsibility to effectively address these issues,

– having regard to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, in particular its Articles on human dignity, the right to life, freedom of expression, the rights of the child, victims’ rights, privacy of communications and the protection of personal data,

– having regard to the European Convention on Human Rights and the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights,

– having regard to Article 83(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU),

– having regard to Directive 2011/93/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on combating the sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children and child pornography,

– having regard to Directive 2012/29/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 establishing minimum standards on the rights, support and protection of victims of crime (Victims’ Rights Directive),

– having regard to Directive (EU) 2018/1808 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 November 2018 amending Directive 2010/13/EU on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the provision of audiovisual media services (Audiovisual Media Services Directive) in view of changing market realities,

– having regard to Directive (EU) 2024/1385 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 May 2024 on combating violence against women and domestic violence,

– having regard to Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on a Single Market For Digital Services and amending Directive 2000/31/EC (Digital Services Act),

– having regard to Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 laying down harmonised rules on artificial intelligence and amending Regulations (EC) No 300/2008, (EU) No 167/2013, (EU) No 168/2013, (EU) 2018/858, (EU) 2018/1139 and (EU) 2019/2144 and Directives 2014/90/EU, (EU) 2016/797 and (EU) 2020/1828 (Artificial Intelligence Act),

– having regard to the Commission guidelines of 10 October 2025 on measures to ensure a high level of privacy, safety and security for minors online, pursuant to Article 28(4) of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065,

– having regard to the Commission report of 25 November 2025 entitled ‘Cyberbullying – Insights from science, policy and legislation’,

– having regard to the Commission action plan against cyberbullying of 10 February 2026 entitled ‘Safer online, stronger together’ (COM(2026)0071),

– having regard to the Commission communication of 11 May 2022 entitled ‘A Digital Decade for children and youth: the new European strategy for a better internet for kids (BIK+)’ (COM(2022)0212),

– having regard to its resolution of 5 October 2023 on the new European strategy for a better internet for kids (BIK+),

– having regard to national legislation against cyberbullying, including Ireland’s ‘Coco’s Law’,

– having regard to the speech made by Coco’s mother, Jackie Fox, in the European Parliament on 10 March 2026 on the occasion of International Women’s Day,

– having regard to the Commission communication of 9 December 2021 entitled ‘A more inclusive and protective Europe: extending the list of EU crimes to hate speech and hate crime’ (COM(2021)0777) and the proposal for a Council decision annexed thereto,

– having regard to its resolution of 18 January 2024 on extending the list of EU crimes to hate speech and hate crime,

– having regard to Rule 136(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas cyberbullying is a growing problem, as recognised in the Commission’s action plan against cyberbullying; whereas 18.3 % of children worldwide have experienced cyberbullying through electronic messages or social media posts; whereas cyberbullying also occurs through audiovisual content such as photos or videos shared online; whereas in Europe, around 1 in 6 children aged between 11 and 15 report being victims of cyberbullying; whereas around 1 in 8 children admit to having participated in cyberbullying others; whereas between 2018 and 2022, the number of adolescents being cyberbullied rose by a quarter for boys and almost a quarter for girls; whereas over the past five years, cyberbullying has consistently been the main reason for contacting the Safer Internet Centres helplines;

B. whereas in its resolution of 29 April 2021 on the European Child Guarantee, it called on the Member States to develop strategies to protect children from online bullying and child sexual abuse;

C. whereas in her 2025 State of the Union address, the Commission President announced that she would convene a panel of specialists to advise on the best approach for Europe on child safety online and potential age restrictions for accessing social media; whereas this special panel is tasked with exploring how to best address key issues surrounding child safety online, such as through a harmonised EU-wide minimum age for accessing social media, tailored protections based on age and risk, and educational measures to promote responsible social media use; whereas the panel has met twice so far; whereas the co-chairs are to report to the Commission President on their findings and recommendations by summer 2026;

D. whereas several Member States have introduced targeted criminal provisions addressing cyberbullying;

E. whereas on 9 December 2021, the Commission proposed adding ‘hate crime’ to the list of EU crimes laid down in Article 83(1) TFEU; whereas this proposal did not garner the necessary unanimous support among Member States;

F. whereas the Commission has announced that a new EU strategy on victims’ rights will be adopted in 2026 to complement EU rules with non-legislative measures; whereas this strategy aims to promote structures for targeted psychological support and protection services for child victims, including of online crimes;

G. whereas the Commission has initiated a number of formal proceedings against Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) for potential breaches of the Digital Services Act (DSA) relating to cyberbullying or harassment, including investigations into compliance with the ‘notice and action’ mechanism and possible shortcomings in risk assessment and mitigation measures;

Action plan against cyberbullying

1. Recalls that the recently published action plan against cyberbullying sets out a comprehensive and holistic framework for tackling cyberbullying; highlights, in this regard, the recently published Commission guidelines under the DSA for the protection of minors online that specify how platforms can ensure minors’ safety when using their services;

2. Welcomes the stricter implementation and enforcement of existing legislation, as announced in the action plan;

3. Reiterates its call on the Member States, as echoed in the action plan, to establish comprehensive national plans against bullying, including cyberbullying;

4. Welcomes the preventive measures detailed in the action plan, in particular the announcement that the Commission will expand resources and training on cyberbullying for schools and non-formal and informal education services;

5. Takes note of the online safety app announced in the action plan that will allow for easy reporting of instances of cyberbullying;

Age verification

6. Recalls, in this context, that the EU age verification app presented by the Commission President on 15 April 2026 has serious flaws that were exposed by security researchers within hours; calls on the Commission to ensure that it only releases software, particularly in this sensitive field, that has been thoroughly tested and that employs state-of-the-art techniques, including zero-knowledge proofs;

7. Is not convinced that age verification apps or social media bans for certain age groups would contribute to a holistic solution to cyberbullying and considers that they might instead create a false sense of security; calls for a more robust approach to prevent cyberbullying and online harassment;

8. Calls on the Commission to wait for the final report of its special panel on child safety online before taking further steps on age verification;

9. Calls on the Member States to strengthen the integration of responsible online behaviour and anti-bullying education into school curricula, including aspects related to consent and safe online interactions;

10. Calls for platforms to implement safety-by-design measures, including friction mechanisms to help prevent the spread of harmful content, limits on the virality of flagged content, safer default settings and stronger content moderation for minors;

Criminal law

11. Points out that there is no commonly agreed definition of cyberbullying at EU or international level;

12. Notes that the action plan against cyberbullying does not provide for measures in the field of criminal law at EU level;

13. Notes that several Member States have national legislation addressing cyberbullying, even if the term ‘cyberbullying’ is often not used in these laws;

14. Takes note of the measures introduced in the criminal codes of several Member States to address cyberbullying, including:

(a) Ireland’s Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act of 2020, known as ‘Coco’s Law’, which provides for two offences, namely the non-consensual recording, distribution or publication of intimate images (‘revenge porn’), and the distribution, publication or sending of threatening or grossly offensive communications or messages with the intent to cause harm;

(b) France’s legislation dealing with cases of ‘revenge porn’, as provided for in Articles 226-1 and 226-2 of the Penal Code;

(c) Austria’s amendment to its Criminal Code in January 2016, where under Article 107c, ‘continuous harassment by means of telecommunications or a computer system’ became a punishable offence;

(d) Romania’s Law No 106/2020, which amends and complements Law No 217/2003 on preventing and combating domestic violence, introduces the concept of ‘cyber violence’ within the scope of ‘domestic violence’, which covers ‘any (...) form of misuse of information and communication technology (...) in order to shame, humiliate, scare, threaten, silence the victim’;

(e) Slovakia’s amendment of 27 May 2021 to its Criminal Code, which defines the offence of ‘dangerous electronic harassment’, including conduct aimed at damaging the identity of the person in question;

15. Takes note of cases in other Member States that do not have a specific criminal offence of ‘cyberbullying’, but where measures have been taken in civil or other areas of law, including education codes;

16. Takes note of the diverse approaches in the Member States; invites the Member States to share best practice and experience regarding their legal approaches;

17. Highlights the fact that sufficient capacity and ability to conduct effective investigations, complementary to proper legislation, are indispensable in addressing cyberbullying; invites the Commission and Europol to undertake the necessary measures to increase the investigative capacities of the Member States in this regard, including by combating trans-border cyberbullying, as well as assessing the need for a more harmonised approach, including the possibility of adding a new EU crime under Article 83(1) TFEU;

18. Recalls its position in favour of adding ‘hate crime’ to the list of EU crimes laid down in Article 83(1) TFEU; urges the Member States to reach a consensus on this matter; considers that ‘cyberbullying’ could be covered under such a hate crime provision;

Online platforms and the DSA

19. Points out that the business model of online platforms incentivises the spread of hateful content and therefore contributes to an increasingly unsafe online environment, particularly for minors, women and members of the LGBTIQ+ community or other minorities; highlights the role of hyper-personalised recommender systems that push hate speech and down-rank less divisive content;

20. Underlines that, although the DSA addresses many aspects of harassment and cyberbullying, enforcement cases are still ongoing or under review; calls on the Commission to urgently close ongoing cases and open investigations into the impact of recommender systems in relation to systemic risks, notably gender-based violence, minors, and physical and mental well-being; strongly rejects any attempts to reopen the DSA as this would put the protection and rights of people at risk rather than preventing harm; believes that issues related to cyberbullying and harassment will persist until recommender system algorithms are effectively addressed; underlines that other initiatives, such as age-gating, only deal with the problem at the surface level rather than addressing the root causes;

21. Points out that access for researchers under the DSA is crucial to ensure evidence-based lawmaking; laments the fact that issues persist and need to be urgently brought into compliance;

22. Is concerned that the recently announced ‘dialogue’ on the enforcement of digital legislation as part of the trade negotiations with the Trump administration may put rigorous and independent enforcement action at risk and lower the protection afforded under the DSA and the Digital Markets Act; stresses that this may also impact the protection of victims of cyberbullying; calls on the Commission to urgently clarify that the enforcement of digital laws is not up for negotiation in exchange for lower tariffs or other trade benefits;

23. Recalls that, according to the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, the sanctioning or even prevention of all forms of expression which spread, incite, promote or justify hatred do not constitute violations of the freedom of expression, provided that those measures are proportionate to the legitimate aim pursued;

Other measures

24. Recalls that the revised Audiovisual Media Services Directive contains certain provisions obliging video-sharing platforms to protect minors from harmful content and all users from content inciting violence or hatred; calls on the Commission to monitor the implementation of this directive by Member States especially in this regard;

25. Recalls, in this regard, the need to strengthen the protection of victims and invest in psychological and legal assistance for victims of harassment and cyberbullying; is concerned that victims’ organisations are increasingly under threat owing to a lack of funding or attacks from non-EU countries, as highlighted by recent cases involving the Trump administration; calls for the swift implementation and transposition of the revised Victims’ Rights Directive;

26. Expresses concern about the growing use of AI for abusive purposes, including the generation of deepfake content, voice cloning, impersonation and the sharing of non-consensual intimate content in digital environments, which can result in coordinated harassment, identity theft, reputational damage and psychological harm;

27. Welcomes the efforts of Parliament and the Council to ban ‘nudifier applications’ under the Artificial Intelligence Act as part of the AI omnibus negotiations;

28. Calls for the integration of cyberbullying prevention and response measures into national mental health strategies, including accessible psychological support services for victims, with particular attention to minors and other vulnerable groups;

29. Calls for increased and sustainable EU funding for civil society organisations, including helplines, victim support services and awareness-raising initiatives, which play a key role in addressing cyberbullying and supporting victims across the Member States;

30. Calls on the Commission to further develop user-friendly and accessible reporting mechanisms, including a potential EU-wide interface, ensuring that victims of cyberbullying can easily report harmful content and receive timely support;

31. Stresses that European digital sovereignty, as enshrined in the European Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles for the Digital Decade, constitutes a structural precondition for effective and durable child protection online; calls therefore on the Commission and the Member States to invest in Europe-hosted, privacy-preserving technical infrastructure and solutions for child safety online, including alternative recommender systems, built on open and independently auditable standards; calls, furthermore, on the Commission to make European digital sovereignty in the area of child protection an explicit and non-negotiable criterion in all trade, regulatory and diplomatic dialogues with non-EU countries whose platforms operate within the EU internal market;

32. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States.