COPPA

Since its inception in 1998, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) has been the cornerstone of protecting the personal data of minors under the age of 13 in the United States. COPPA imposes various requirements, including parental consent, notice and transparency, and data minimization, among other things, on online services that are “directed to children [under 13]” and “mixed audience” online services, or those that have actual knowledge that they have collected personal data from a child [under 13] online.

Many organizations that previously did not have to worry about COPPA or COPPA-based standards as applied to state consumer privacy laws should be aware of the trend in state privacy legislation to expand restrictions and obligations beyond COPPA’s under age 13 standard, to minors that are at least 13 and under the age of 18 (“Teens”). This trend began in 2020 with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) requiring consent for “sale” of personal information of consumers at least age 13 but younger than 16 years of age  (the California Privacy Rights Act expanded that requirement to “sharing” as well). Consent must be given by the Teen or, if the consumer is under age 13, by the parent, using COPPA verification standards. Other relevant aspects regarding this trend, of which organizations should be aware, include:Continue Reading Trending: Teens’ Data Subject to Heightened Restrictions Under Ten (and Counting?) State Privacy Laws

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Online privacy and safety of children and teens are hot legislative topics this year. In a companion post we provide an update of federal and state legislative efforts to fundamentally change how online content and advertising are delivered to children and teens. We have previously discussed legislation in California and Connecticut to require assessments of online privacy impacts on minors. In this post we focus on proposed regulatory and legislative changes to the 1998 Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) (effective in 2000) and its corresponding regulations (COPPA Rule), which were last updated in 2013.Continue Reading Federal Children’s Privacy Requirements to Be Updated and Expanded

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2023 State Privacy Laws: How to Assess and Ensure Readiness by Year-end

Malcolm Dowden and Niloufar Massachi Discuss Vendor…

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has released a staff report, Bringing Dark Patterns to Light, which discusses misleading and manipulative design practices—dark patterns—in web and mobile apps. These design choices take advantage of users’ cognitive biases to influence their behavior and prevent them from making fully informed decisions about their data and purchases. Dark patterns are employed to get users to surrender their personal information, unwittingly sign up for services, and purchase products they do not intend to purchase. The consequences of dark patterns have been increasingly noticed in the regulatory and legislative sphere, both in the United States and Europe. 
Continue Reading Dark Patterns under the Regulatory Spotlight Again

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Online Safety in Digital Markets Needs a Joined Up Approach with Competition Law in the UK

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For years now, California has led the way by setting the standard for privacy and data protection regulation in the United States. Recently— and as calls for greater controls over the addictive nature of social media grow louder—legislators in the Golden State have moved closer toward enacting a new, first-of-its-kind privacy law that would prohibit the development and utilization of “addictive” features by social media platforms. At the same time, state legislators also advanced a second bill that would put in place stringent online privacy protections for minors.

Businesses should monitor the progress of these bills closely, as their enactment—combined with an increased focus on children’s privacy by both federal lawmakers and the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”)—may have a ripple effect in other states and municipalities, with legislators following close behind to enact similar children’s online privacy laws.Continue Reading California Moves Closer to Enacting More Stringent Online Privacy Protections for Children

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OOPS! And Other Takeaways from the First Draft of CPRA Regulations

Start Vetting Your Data Processors! Key Takeaways From…

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FCC Announces Nine More State Robocall Investigation Partnerships

FTC Targets Children’s…

Last week, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) held an open meeting focused on issues related to children’s privacy and those pertaining to the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising. In the meeting, the FTC adopted a new policy statement targeting data collection practices in educational technology. Further, the FTC proposed amendments to the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (“Endorsement Guides”) which would target child-directed marketing. Of note, one of the amendments would recognize that children may react to advertising practices differently than adults and thus advertising practices directed towards children may be treated differently by the FTC compared to those practices directed towards adults.
Continue Reading FTC Targets Children’s Privacy and Stealth Advertising Directed at Children