Coalition Asks FTC To Extend Child Privacy Protection To Mobile, Gaming And Other Platforms

A coalition of 17 advocacy groups and health organizations is asking the Federal Trade Commission to issue tougher regulations regarding online marketing to children. The organizations are calling on the FTC to extend rules implementing the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act to a host of devices and platforms, including cell phones, gaming consoles, digital billboards and interactive TV. The Clinton-era law prohibits operators of Web sites and online services geared toward children from collecting personal information from minors under 13 without their parents' consent. "When Congress passed COPPA in 1998, computers provided the only means of accessing websites and online services. Today, adults and children have many other ways to access the Internet and online services," the groups say in their comments. Organizations that have joined in the comments include The Center for Digital Democracy, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, American Academy of Pediatrics, Consumers Union and U.S. PIRG. The groups also are asking the FTC to broaden the definition of personal information to include not only names and street or email addresses, but other data like IP addresses, geolocation data and other "seemingly anonymous" information that can be used for online behavioral advertising -- or serving ads to users based on data about them. "Information collected through geolocation is especially sensitive given that it can allow for a child to be physically contacted wherever he or she is, at any time," the coalition says in its FTC filing. In addition, the groups say the FTC should require some online sites, social networks and ad networks to file regular reports on their collection and use of visitors' data.

The National Cable & Telecommunications Association told the FTC that COPPA has been working well, and cautions the commission against making any big changes to its enforcement. COPPA regulates the collection and use of personal information from and about children collected on the Internet. NCTA argues that the rule has effectively limited the collection of personal information from children while preserving "meaningful content" and maintaining the integrity of children's interactive experiences on the Internet. NCTA warns against "effectively barring children's access to interactive functionality within emerging technologies and platforms" and says it should retain its definition of personal information and leave parental consent mechanisms alone.