COPPA and Children's Privacy

December 22, 2011

On December 22, 2011, CLIP filed comments on the Federal Trade Commission’s proposed amendments to the Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule, which restricts what information certain websites can collect from children under 13 without parental consent. The FTC stated that it believes the amendments are necessary in order "to ensure that the Rule continues to protect children’s privacy, as mandated by Congress, as online technologies evolve." CLIP is in support of many of the changes proposed by the FTC and offered comments on ways in which the rule can be strengthened further to protect children. Building on the work that CLIP has done in the past related to children's privacy, CLIP’s comments focus on following issues: (1) the classification of screen names as personal information; (2) the ease of “de-anonymizing” demographic data; (3) the regulation of behavioral advertising networks in relation to children; (4) consent mechanisms; and (5) the establishment of clear standards for data deletion.

Read CLIP's comments