UK AADC Standard 8 — Data minimisation (ICO Age Appropriate Design Code, statutory guidance under DPA 2018 s 123)
Collect only minimum data needed for features child actively uses; offer granular choices
Where this comes from
Provision: Standard 8 — Data minimisation (ICO Age Appropriate Design Code, statutory guidance under DPA 2018 s 123)
Instrument: UK Age Appropriate Design Code
Citation: Data Protection Act 2018 s 123/s 127; ICO Age Appropriate Design Code, Standard 8 — Data minimisation; general minimisation duty derives from UK GDPR Art 5(1)(c) (not independently re-verified against the GDPR text in this unit)
Text version: ICO Age Appropriate Design Code (statutory code of practice under Data Protection Act 2018 s 123; in force from 2 September 2020 with a transition period to 2 September 2021 - date not independently verified on the ICO pages), fifteen standards as displayed on ico.org.uk on 2026-09-23. The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 has amended UK GDPR and the ICO has signalled a revised code: check for a reissued code before relying on this text.
Who it applies to
It applies when all of these are true:
- Service is likely to be accessed by children under 18
- Service collects behavioral data
What engineering work it implies
Sample acceptance criteria Landfall generates for this obligation:
- Consent modal/page appears BEFORE data collection begins
- Consent options are granular (user can accept some, reject others)
- 'Reject All' is as prominent as 'Accept All'
- No pre-checked boxes - all start unchecked
- When relying on consent, store the necessary scoped consent reference, purposes and choices, timestamp and notice version; avoid collecting extra identity data solely for the record
Questions people ask
- Does UK AADC Standard 8 — Data minimisation (ICO Age Appropriate Design Code, stat… apply to my service?
- It applies when Service is likely to be accessed by children under 18; Service collects behavioral data.
- From when does this apply?
- UK AADC Standard 8 — Data minimisation (ICO Age Appropriate Design Code, stat… applies from 2 September 2021. Its current status is: in force.
Find out whether this one lands on you
Landfall's pre-scan answers the applicability question above for your product in minutes, then turns every obligation that applies into traceable engineering tickets with a citation chain your auditors can follow.
Not legal advice. Landfall maps regulatory obligations to engineering work for planning purposes. Its verdicts are not legal advice and create no attorney-client relationship — verify with qualified counsel before relying on them.