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WW International Underage Data Collection Complaint Overview:
- Who: WW International and Kurbo Inc. have agreed to a $1.5 million settlement following a complaint from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
- Why: The FTC claims the companies illegally collected the data of underage users without first notifying their parents or obtaining their consent.
- Where: The complaint was filed in California federal court.
WW International — previously Weight Watchers — has agreed to pay $1.5 million to resolve claims from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that it illegally gathered the data of underage users of its Kurbo program.
WW International, along with its subsidiary Kurbo Inc., has also agreed to delete any personal information gathered without parental consent from thousands of underage users lest they give notice and obtain parental consent to use it within 30 days, Law360 reports.
The FTC accused WW International and Kurbo of violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and Section 5 of the FTC Act due to the alleged data collection practices for Kurbo program users under the age of 13.
WW International neither provided notice for the data collection nor received any parental consent before doing so while holding onto the information “indefinitely,” the FTC claimed in a complaint filed alongside the proposed settlement and on behalf of the U.S. Department of Justice.
In addition to paying the civil penalty and deleting the data, WW International and Kurbo will also be required to remove any models or algorithms used to collect the data and ensure parents have upfront notices of any underage data collection practices in the future, Law360 reports.
“Since at least 2014, defendants have offered weight management services to children online and collected and kept those children’s personal information without providing notice to, or obtaining consent from, their parents as required by the COPPA Rule,” the FTC said in its complaint. “The rule is intended to protect the safety and privacy of children online, and defendants’ failure to comply with its requirements is particularly problematic in light of the sensitive nature of the service defendants offer.”
WW International, Kurbo Collected Information Without Consent
In spite of COPPA regulations, the FTC alleges WW International and Kurbo gathered the names, email addresses and other personal identifying information of children without first notifying or getting consent from their parents.
The Kurbo weight loss management program was originally launched back in 2014 as a service for teenagers, children and families and was later rebranded after WW International acquired the company in 2018, according to the FTC.
A separate class action lawsuit was filed against then-Weight Watchers in 2020 by a customer claiming the company continued charging monthly membership fees despite in-person meetings being canceled due to the pandemic.
Has your underage child used WW International’s Kurbo weight loss program? Let us know in the comments!
The FTC is represented by Brian M. Boynton, Gustav W. Eyler, Lisa K. Hsiao, Rachel L. Doud, Zachary L. Cowan of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch, and Stephanie M. Hinds, Michelle Lo and Sharanya Mohan of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California.
The FTC WW International, Kurbo Underage Data Collection Complaint is United States of America v. Kurbo Inc., et al., Case No. 3:22-cv-00946, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
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