China has issued a comprehensive new regulatory framework classifying online information that may affect the physical and mental health of minors, marking the latest expansion of national rules governing youth protection and digital platforms. The measures will take effect on March 1, 2026, according to a joint notice published by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) and eight other ministries and regulators.
The “Classification Measures for Online Information That May Affect the Physical and Mental Health of Minors” outline detailed categories of content that, while not illegal, may induce minors to imitate unsafe conduct, develop unhealthy habits, or adopt distorted values. The guidelines cite content involving sexual innuendo, cyberbullying, extreme emotions, dangerous stunts, unhealthy consumption practices, smoking and drinking, “fan circle” extremism, cheating in school, and irrational spending.
The rules also address online depictions of minors themselves, including the commercial or sensational use of minors’ images, staged content involving inappropriate values, and situations that could reveal personal information about children under 14 without guardian consent.
Under the new framework, online content producers and platforms must apply warning notices to affected material, using prominent textual, visual, or audio prompts. Platforms offering algorithmic recommendations or generative artificial intelligence services are instructed to build risk management systems to prevent flagged content from being pushed to minors. Such material also cannot appear in prominent positions such as homepages, rankings, search recommendations, or pop-ups.
The measures draw legal authority from a suite of recent digital governance laws, including China’s Minors Protection Law, the Personal Information Protection Law, and regulations adopted since 2023 on cyberbullying, online content ecology, and the governance of minors’ digital environments. Enforcement will rely on existing administrative mechanisms under cybersecurity and minors protection statutes.
The announcement reflects China’s broader effort to regulate youth exposure to online content amid rising concern over digital health, platform recommendation systems, and the social impacts of AI-driven media.
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