FTC children’s online privacy overview:
- Who: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is proposing rules to make the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA) stronger.
- Why: The changes move responsibility for the protection of online information from parents to the companies that collect that information.
- Where: The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule was announced from the FTC’s Washington, D.C. office.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is proposing changes to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA) in an attempt to strengthen the protection of children’s information that is collected online.
The rules change is attempting to shift protection of that online information from parents to the digital services providers who collect the data.
The FTC children’s online privacy proposal includes a requirement to obtain separate verifiable parental consent to disclose information to third parties including third-party advertisers unless the disclosure can be proven to be integral to the nature of the website or online service. The disclosure cannot be made a condition of accessing services.
“Kids must be able to play and learn online without being endlessly tracked by companies looking to hoard and monetize their personal data,” FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said in a statement. “The proposed changes to COPPA are much-needed, especially in an era where online tools are essential for navigating daily life — and where firms are deploying increasingly sophisticated digital tools to surveil children.”
Privacy rules out ‘affirmative obligations’f on service providers
The proposed children’s online privacy rules would also reinforce that companies cannot condition participation in an online activity on providing permission to collect more personal information than absolutely necessary or than is reasonably necessary to participate in a game, offer a prize or other activities. There is a firm ban on those practices.
“By requiring firms to better safeguard kids’ data, our proposal places affirmative obligations on service providers and prohibits them from outsourcing their responsibilities to parents,” Khan said.
Some operators are allowed to use persistent identifiers — including customer numbers held in cookies, IP addresses or device serial number, according to the Federal Trade Commission — without first getting consent as long as no other information is collected. The children’s online privacy changes will require operators using the exception to provide an online notice stating what identifiers are collected and how that information is not used or disclosed to contact individuals.
The changes also prevent companies from using information collected to send push notifications or nudges to get users to use the service more.
State and federal government officials have lately been working to figure out protection for children from the dangers and threats associated with artificial intelligence (AI) and online activity.
Have you been asked to give consent to share your online information with a third party? Let us know in the comments.
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