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• We used field data to identify the maintenance hosts of microsporidian parasites. • Anostracospora rigaudi was highly prevalent in both hosts. • However, A. rigaudi is a spillover parasite. • Anostracospora rigaudi 's maintenance host is seasonal, causing seasonal spillovers. • Enterocytospora artemiae might also be a spillover parasite. In the study of multi-host parasites, it is often found that host species contribute asymmetrically to parasite transmission. Yet in natural populations, identifying which hosts contribute to parasite transmission and maintenance is a recurring challenge. Here, we approach this issue by taking advantage of natural variation in the composition of a host community. We studied the brine shrimps Artemia franciscana and Artemia parthenogenetica and their microsporidian parasites Anostracospora rigaudi and Enterocytospora artemiae. Previous laboratory experiments had shown that each host can transmit both parasites, but could not predict their actual contributions to the parasites' maintenance in the field. To resolve this, we gathered long-term prevalence data from a metacommunity of these species. Metacommunity patches could contain either or both of the Artemia host species, so that the presence of the hosts could be linked directly to the persistence of the parasites. First, we show that the microsporidian A. rigaudi is a spillover parasite: it was unable to persist in the absence of its maintenance host A. parthenogenetica. This result was particularly striking, as A. rigaudi displayed both high prevalence (in the field) and high infectivity (when tested in the laboratory) in both hosts. Moreover, the seasonal presence of A. parthenogenetica imposed seasonality on the rate of spillover, causing cyclical pseudo-endemics in the spillover host A. franciscana. Second, while our prevalence data was sufficient to identify E. artemiae as either a spillover or a facultative multi-host parasite, we could not distinguish between the two possibilities. This study supports the importance of studying the community context of multi-host parasites, and demonstrates that in appropriate multi-host systems, sampling across a range of conditions and host communities can lead to clear conclusions about the drivers of parasite persistence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) devotes particular attention to the protection of personal data of children. The rationale is that children are less aware of the risks and the potential consequences of the processing of their personal data on their rights. Yet, the text of the GDPR offers little clarity as to the actual implementation and impact of a number of provisions that may significantly affect children and their rights, leading to legal uncertainty for data controllers, parents and children. This uncertainty relates for instance to the age of consent for processing children's data in relation to information society services, the technical requirements regarding parental consent in that regard, the interpretation of the extent to which profiling of children is allowed and the level of transparency that is required vis-à-vis children. This article aims to identify a number of key issues and questions – both theoretical and practical – that raise concerns from a multi-dimensional children's rights perspective, and to clarify remaining ambiguities in the run-up to the actual application of the GDPR from 25 May 2018 onwards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent social science research shows that children from as young as 7 are avid users of Social Networking Sites (SNS) such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr. The involvement of minor users on SNS platforms raises significant legal challenges, for instance regarding their capacity to enter into a membership agreement, consenting to share or be tagged in photographs and liability for certain actions. This contribution aims to identify relevant legal issues related to SNS use by (young) children and to assess the applicability of existing legal frameworks at European and national level with regard to the capacity to contract, transfer of intellectual property rights, right to image, and the liability of children and parents for certain breaches of legislative provisions or acts that cause damage. The second part contains an exploration of user empowerment mechanisms such as the use of innovative information provision tools or awareness-raising to achieve better informed decision-making by children (and parents) with regard to their SNS use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Anostracaspora rigaudi was more virulent than Enterocytospora artemiae. [•] Prevalence of An. rigaudi was four times higher in native than in invasive hosts. [•] Prevalence of E. artemiae was three times lower in native than in invasive hosts. [•] Native and invaded Artemia franciscana host populations did not differ in prevalence. [•] No evidence was found of the co-introduction of E. artemiae with the invasive host. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The protection of minors against harmful content in the converging media environment has been a matter of regulatory concern for quite a considerable period. The risk of children stumbling upon potentially harmful material has increased proportionally to the speed of technological developments, such as the availability of broadband access to the Internet. Due to the decentralised, border-crossing and permanently available nature of the new information and communication networks, increasing attention has been brought to the intricacies of efficiently protecting minors against harmful information and images, which were not as easily accessible before. Thus far, no conclusive legal answer or regulatory approach has been identified to tackle the challenge that is posed by this new media environment in an efficient way. Different regulatory approaches and strategies are being considered: legislative proposals, co-regulatory instruments, self-regulatory mechanisms and technological solutions all belong to the spectrum of possible policy choices. The analysis of four regulatory initiatives – the US Communications Decency Act and Child Online Protection Act, the UK mobile operators’ code of conduct with respect to harmful mobile content, the Australian approach to Internet content co-regulation and the Belgian initiative to use the e-ID to protect children in chatrooms – indicates that the use of co-regulatory schemes, preferably with the aid of technical tools, might be the most desirable option at the moment. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Marketing techniques such as advergames have proven to be an extremely useful marketing tool for advertisers and in particular when targeted towards children. Such techniques allow for the development of a positive product or brand association through the delivery of fun interactive content. As a result, children are no longer merely passive receivers of commercial communications. Instead, they become actively involved in the advertising process. Advergames have a potentially manipulative aspect. Children are often unable to distinguish between the commercial message and the non-commercial content. This has negative consequences when one considers the potentially persuasive nature of marketing techniques such as advergames which can further heighten this confusion. Moreover, as modern business models are based on data, advertisers are increasingly interested in the personal information of their young customers. Increased computing capabilities mean that commercial entities are now able to profile individual consumer behaviour online and assess how it differs from rational decision-making and to leverage this for economic gain. Such profiles facilitate the targeting of personalised advertisements thereby tailoring marketing campaigns based on children's behaviour. The capacity to collect and process information in addition to the technical ability to personalise consumer services online potentially allows for the triggering of consumer frailty. This has particular importance when one considers the effects of positive emotions, caused by advergames. The purpose of this paper is to examine the legal issues associated with advergames from an EU perspective and, in particular, this advertising technique's capacity to manipulate emotions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ample research exists and focuses on teenagers' understanding of interpersonal privacy on social media. Less is known about younger children's understanding of privacy and data protection, especially in institutional and commercial data processing contexts. We have spoken to 83 children aged 9–12 years old in two public primary schools in the city of Ghent, Belgium. During the 16 workshops we conducted (which consisted of a focus group stage and a co-design exercise), we discussed children's everyday (online) activities and practices, their understanding of and views on interpersonal and institutional privacy, the privacy management techniques they use and the rights they have. The findings of our participatory research with young children provide insight into children's ideas and views about these issues. We report on a number of children's recommendations on how exactly information about privacy and data protection should be provided to them. The research has the potential to guide and inform both policymaking and the practical design of privacy and data policies by actors who process children's personal data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]