85 percent of 10 -year -old children have a smartphone.Of these, 75 % have Internet access, according to a recent study by the Public University of Navarra.Navigating virtual stores such as Amazon or Wallapop is relatively simple for a minor.But are they legally trained to buy online?Although it is its natural habitat, the reality is that the law limits the power of action of young people in the World Wide Web.
The Civil Code recognizes non -emancipated minors what is known as the ability to work limited.This means that they can acquire goods or services "of the current life of their age in accordance with social uses."For example, a book or a toy, usually objects of little value.
The general norm, therefore, is that, to buy - also online - minors need the permission of their parents or legal guardians.But any case deserves your study.Eugenio Ribón, president of the Spanish Association of Right of Consumption, clarifies that the ability to buy a minor "must accommodate common sense."Age is important: "The hiring of a 7 -year -old boy than a 17 -year -old teenager cannot also be valued, the lawyer adds.
What minors cannot buy are objects such as cars, jewels, and in general, things "that does not correspond to their economic capacity," explains the lawyer.Nor did it products at adults.Or something that compromises the economic capacity of their parents."It is not the same of chromos or a film input than an annual subscription on a digital platform," says Ribón.
Félix Pastor Alfonso, partner in De la Riva and Pastor Abogados, agrees that a child cannot buy anything on platforms such as Wallapop or Vinned."Except for very specific acts, minors cannot enter into contracts alone," he recalls.
For its part, Rosana Pérez Gurrea, an expert lawyer in the law of consumers and professor at the Oberta de Catalunya University, goes further and states that in the Internet environment "minors have no capacity to buy", so thatThey always need authorization from their parents. "
False profiles
Creating a false profile on the Internet is easy.Portales such as Mediamarkt or Amazon demand from their buyers to be over 18 years old and sign responsible statements in this regard.They try to exonerate any responsibility in case of closing a sale with a minor that, legally, is not trained for it.
"He is the entrepreneur, and with greater reason in online hiring, which must articulate the appropriate mechanisms to ensure that the product or service is addressed to a person with full hiring capacity and that fits social uses,"Ribón confirms.Pérez Gurrea adds, this sense, that "there are digital certificates that allow identifying or relating all parties."
Without going any further, a few days ago Instagram announced that it will use artificial intelligence to detect the real age of its users.The goal of Mark Zuckerberg is to identify those profiles that are hidden after false identities;especially, to children under 14 who are not allowed to access the network.
Reversible pact
If, despite these controls, a minor buys something that does not owe for the network, not everything is lost and there is room to undo the mess.Pastor defends that, in these cases, the contract is "voidable", but "once the age of age was fulfilled, the agreement would be confirmed, no matter how much the minor was concluded without the consent of the parents.""If the cancellation was requested, the demand must be submitted within 4 years," says the lawyer.
However, there are diversity of opinions.The lawyer Pérez Gurrea believes that, in these cases, the "contract is directly null due to lack of consent" - different than canceled -.In these cases it is as if the purchase had never existed.
Data assignment.Those over fourteen can voluntarily yield their data, according to current data protection regulations.Below this limit, Sergio Cámara, Professor of Civil Law at the University of La Rioja, points out that "valid contractual consent could be in question without parental representation."
Social networks.In Spain, the law limits access to social networks and chats to those over 14.However, each portal imposes its own rules and plays with this limit.Thus, on Instagram and Facebook you can only enter if you are older than 14 years;Instead, Twitter, WhatsApp or YouTube allow access from the age of 13.
Vulnerable consumers.Chamber explains that, in any case, minors would enter into the category of 'vulnerable consumers', a group of users that was created in January 2021. "This type of consumers enjoy special protection in relation to the way of supplyingPre -contractual information adapted to its characteristics, "says the professor.
Worked.Minors familiar with the digital environment, such as youtubers or influencers, can be valuable active in the labor market.Rosario Romero, partner in RB Legal, recalls in this matter that the Statute of Workers prohibits the hiring of children under 16 years.There is only one exception: "The hiring of minors than 16 for the intervention in public shows," says the expert.In these cases, hiring "must be authorized by the Labor Authority."
