Tag Archives: Children’s Privacy

International Data Protection Update – Summer 2021

This update highlights some of the international data protection issues that caught our attention, and the attention of our clients, over the summer. Asia-Pacific China’s Data Security Law and Personal Information Protection Law – This summer, the People’s Republic of China passed two new data protection laws. The Data Security Law (DSL) passed in June … Continue Reading

Privacy and Product Counseling: 2020 in Review

By Kyle R. Fath, Gerald J. Ferguson and Nichole Sterling on December 17, 2020 Posted in Privacy

Summary Advising our clients on compliance with laws and regulations is, hands down, the most important aspect of our role as attorneys. In addition to seeking counsel on their obligations under laws and regulations, however – motivated by industry trends, utilization of and dependence on third-party services and platforms, and, this year, the COVID-19 pandemic … Continue Reading

Focus on Children’s Privacy Intensifies as Daily Life Moves Online

By Carolina Alonso and Melinda L. McLellan on April 9, 2020 Posted in Children’s Privacy

With physical schools closed indefinitely, classrooms have moved online, either introducing or significantly expanding children’s use of virtual education technology and highlighting certain privacy concerns. Responding to this evolving environment, on April 9 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued COPPA Guidance for Ed Tech Companies and Schools during the Coronavirus to address some common compliance … Continue Reading

Hoping for a New Year’s Resolution: Clarity on the Sale of Personal Information of California Minors

By Carolina Alonso, Alan L. Friel and BakerHostetler on January 9, 2020 Posted in Children’s Privacy

Those who keep an eye on privacy laws may be familiar with how monumental the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) was when it first became effective in 1998. COPPA requires online services that directly target children under the age of 13, or reasonably know that children visit the online service, to obtain verifiable parental … Continue Reading

Children’s Privacy Law Updates: Tricks or Treats?

By Carolina Alonso and BakerHostetler on October 31, 2019 Posted in CCPA, Children’s Privacy

It’s finally here! Halloween, the day every kid dreams of for months. It’s a scary time in the world of children’s privacy law – what with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) lurking around the corner and the specter of FTC enforcement still lingering in the air. But this year, you’ve planned. You know exactly … Continue Reading

States Propose to Expand Child Privacy and Ad Laws

By Alan L. Friel on March 4, 2019 Posted in Children’s Privacy

It is the 25th anniversary of the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which has served us well, but states are looking to expand privacy protection for minors. Several years ago California expanded its Online Privacy Protection Act to give minors the right to remove content they have posted on social media and certain other … Continue Reading

New FTC Provides Insights Into Its Plan for a Balanced Approach to Data Privacy and Security

By Alan L. Friel, John Busch and Carolina Alonso on December 19, 2018 Posted in Federal Legislation, GDPR, Online Privacy

This year brought unprecedented focus on consumer privacy – the rollout of the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Cambridge Analytica controversy and Congressional hearings, a GDPR-light law coming out of California, more and bigger security incidents, and multiple proposals for an omnibus federal data protection law. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC or … Continue Reading

The Weekly Privacy Rewind

By Aaron Lancaster on December 10, 2018 Posted in CCPA, Weekly Privacy Rewind

California Consumer Protection Act Privacy Groups Urge California Lawmakers Not to Weaken California Consumer Privacy Act • A variety of privacy groups, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Digital Privacy Alliance and the Center for Digital Democracy, sent a letter to California lawmakers asking them not to “push[] California backward” when it comes to privacy … Continue Reading

The Weekly Privacy Rewind

By Aaron Lancaster on September 20, 2018 Posted in Weekly Privacy Rewind

Class Actions Judge Approves $80M Settlement in Yahoo Data Breach Suit • U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh awarded plaintiffs $80 million in a consolidated class action brought against Yahoo by shareholders resulting from data breaches Yahoo experienced in 2014 and 2016. • According to the suit, Yahoo’s stock was trading at an artificially high price … Continue Reading

New Mexico Attorney General Is Turning Up the Heat on Enforcement of Data Privacy Laws

By Sara Goldstein and Aaron Lancaster on September 18, 2018 Posted in Children’s Privacy, State Legislation

With the announcement last week of its new lawsuit against several tech companies for violating Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”), the FTC Act, and New Mexico’s Unfair Practices Act (“UPA”), the State of New Mexico Office of the Attorney General appears to be the latest in an expanding list of state attorneys general who … Continue Reading

From the Mouths of Babes: FTC Issues COPPA Enforcement Policy Regarding Voice Recordings

By Carolina Alonso, Alan L. Friel and Melinda L. McLellan on November 7, 2017 Posted in Children’s Privacy, Enforcement, Internet of Things, Online Privacy

On October 23, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released new guidance on how the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) Rule may apply to audio recordings of children’s voices collected by websites and online services. Reflecting the FTC’s recent focus on privacy and security concerns related to the Internet of Things (IoT), the nonbinding Enforcement … Continue Reading

Mobile Ad Co Settles with FTC Over Allegations of Deceptive Geolocation Tracking And Children’s Privacy Violations for $4 Million

By Alan L. Friel and Suchismita Pahi on June 29, 2016 Posted in Children’s Privacy

On June 22, 2016, mobile advertising company InMobi Private Ltd. settled Federal Trade Commission (“FTC” or “Commission”) claims of violations of Section 5 of the FTC Act, and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and Rule (COPPA), for $4 million. The violations of COPPA supported the monetary penalty since, unlike Section 5, COPPA provides for … Continue Reading

Mobile Apps That Appeal to Children Face Increased Regulatory Scrutiny

By Alan L. Friel and Daniel Goldberg on May 10, 2016 Posted in Children’s Privacy, Cybersecurity

In September 2015, the Online Interest-based Advertising Accountability Program (Accountability Program) of the Advertising Self-regulatory Council (ASRC) began enforcing the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) Guidelines for Mobile Advertising (Mobile Guidance) and now the inevitable has happened: the Accountability Program has issued three compliance decisions with mobile app publishers whose apps allegedly failed to comply with … Continue Reading

FTC Prosecutes Serving of Behavior Ads on Kids’ Apps

By Alan L. Friel on January 7, 2016 Posted in Children’s Privacy

The Federal Trade Commission reminded publishers and advertisers recently that the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) prohibits data collection, absent verified parental consent, for behavioral (interest-based) advertising on websites or mobile apps directed at children under 13. App publisher TapBlaze paid $60,000 and entered into a 20-year consent (available here) to settle charges. The revised … Continue Reading

Yikes, Yelp! Targeted In FTC’s Stepped Up Enforcement of Children’s Privacy – General Audience Services Take Heed

By Alan L. Friel on September 17, 2014 Posted in Children’s Privacy

Signaling a predicted renewal of enforcement of the federal children’s privacy law following broad expansion last year of who and what is covered by the rules, the FTC has filed and settled two recent law suits against mobile app publishers, resulting $750,000 in civil penalties. Most noteworthy is that only one of the two is … Continue Reading

California’s New “Eraser Button” Law Allows Regretful Teens to Remove Embarrassing Internet Postings

By BakerHostetler on October 1, 2013 Posted in Children’s Privacy, Online Privacy

Authored by: Charles K. Shih California became the first state to sign into law a bill that requires websites and apps to provide an “eraser button” to its users under the age of 18. The law, S.B. 568 signed by California Governor Jerry Brown, has two main elements. First, it requires Internet companies to provide … Continue Reading

New COPPA Requirements for Mobile Apps and Websites Now in Effect

By BakerHostetler on September 11, 2013 Posted in Children’s Privacy

Authored by: Benjamin Pergament On June 3, 2013, BakerHostetler’s IP Intelligence: Insight on Intellectual Property blog wrote about the new COPPA requirements coming into effect starting July 1, including a variety of requirements intended to keep up with advances in technology and how children interact with mobile apps and websites. These have now come into … Continue Reading

Legal concepts every social media marketer should know: Part II — Rules of the road for online advertising

By Fernando A. Bohorquez, Jr. on August 27, 2013 Posted in Children’s Privacy, Marketing, Online Privacy

Editor’s Note: This blog post was originally published on August 26, 2013, courtesy of iMedia Connection’s Blog. It is repurposed with permission. This post is co-authored by Alan M. Pate. As long as we have sold stuff, we’ve used images or stories to help sell them. As Calvin Coolidge of all people once said in … Continue Reading

Legal concepts every social media marketer should know: Part I — Consumer privacy

By Fernando A. Bohorquez, Jr. on August 15, 2013 Posted in Children’s Privacy, Marketing, Mobile Privacy, Online Privacy, Social Media

Editor’s Note: This blog post was originally published on August 12, 2013, courtesy of iMedia Connection’s Blog. It is repurposed with permission. This post is co-authored by Alan M. Pate. There are three things a social media website operator or digital marketer probably hates to hear most before launching an online ad campaign: 1. Can you make … Continue Reading

Mobile Apps and Websites Face New COPPA Requirements Starting July 1

By Craig A. Hoffman on June 3, 2013 Posted in Children’s Privacy, Online Privacy

Authored by Benjamin D. Pergament In one month, on July 1, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission’s most recent amendments to its Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act Rule (“COPPA Rule”) will go into effect. These changes include a variety of requirements intended to keep up with advances in technology and how children interact with mobile apps … Continue Reading

FTC Announces New COPPA Enforcement Action & Mobile Privacy Staff Report

By BakerHostetler on February 1, 2013 Posted in Children’s Privacy, Mobile Privacy

At a press conference this morning, outgoing FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz announced an $800,000 settlement of its recent enforcement action against Path, the operator of a social networking app. The Path mobile app allowed users, including children, to create and share journals across their social network. The FTC had alleged violations of the Children’s Online … Continue Reading

FTC Amends Its COPPA Rule to Protect Children Online After Technology Advances In Gathering Their Personal Information

By Barry Cutler on December 26, 2012 Posted in Children’s Privacy, Online Privacy

Technology advances often help consumers do things quicker or easier. For regulators and law enforcers, such advances often present challenges in keeping laws and regulations up to date. The latest example is amendments announced by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) on December 19, 2012, to update its Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) Rule, which … Continue Reading

Rep. Markey to Data-Brokers: Let’s Start with Kids, Then Tackle Data Privacy for the Rest

By William Weber on December 14, 2012 Posted in Children’s Privacy, Online Privacy

In a briefing convened by the Congressional Bi-Partisan Privacy Caucus December 13, 2012, co-chairs Ed Markey (D-MA) and Joe Barton (R-TX) tried to advance their agenda of enhancing children’s online privacy in the context of exploring the scope and practices of “data-brokers.” Panelists included credit bureaus, marketing companies, FTC Commissioners, and privacy advocates. Markey kicked … Continue Reading