FTC Proposes Strengthening Children’s Privacy Rule to Further Limit Companies’ Ability to Monetize Children’s Data

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has proposed changes to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA Rule) that would place new restrictions on the use and disclosure of children’s personal information and further limit the ability of companies to condition access to services on monetizing children’s data. The proposal aims to shift the burden from parents to providers to ensure that digital services are safe and secure for children. In a notice that will be published in the Federal Register, the FTC has proposed several changes to the rule, including:

• Requiring Separate Opt-In For Targeted Advertising
• Prohibition against conditioning a child’s participation on collection of personal information
• Limits on the support for the internal operations exception
• Limits on nudging kids to stay online
• Changes related to Ed Tech
• Increasing accountability for Safe Harbor programs
• Strengthening data security requirements
• Limits on data retention