Complaint Says Ring Pop Campaign Violated Children’s Privacy

Ten advocacy groups have asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the Topps Company, the maker of Ring Pops, accusing the company of violating a federal children’s privacy protection law. That law, called the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act or Coppa, requires operators of sites directed at children to notify parents and obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting personal information -- including photos and screen names that could be used to directly contact users online -- from children under 13.

Topps ran a contest called #RockThatRock. It invited users to post photos on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram of “how they ‘rock’ their edible bling,” as one fan site put it, and to use the #RockThatRock hashtag. The winning photos were featured in a music video by R5, a pop-rock band popular with teenage and pre-teenage girls. Some of the #RockThatRock photos were posted on the brand’s Facebook and Twitter pages, along with contestants’ social media user names. Some of those photos depicted teenaged girls -- and a few who looked even younger -- in provocative poses, with their lips puckered around Ring Pop candies.