by 4 people |
What is COPPA and why should parents care?
The regulations are long and complicated, so here's the short version: Every web site in the U.S. that collects information from kids younger than age 13 is supposed to get verifiable parent consent before allowing them to participate in their site.
If your child is under 13, have you ever been asked to give your permission before your child visits or participates in a web site or online social network?
Keep reading to learn more about COPPA and how it enhances Internet safety.
If your child is under 13, have you ever been asked to give your permission before your child visits or participates in a web site or online social network?
Keep reading to learn more about COPPA and how it enhances Internet safety.
Key Details
Here are the basics to help you understand COPPA
COPPA stands for Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. The COPPA Rule was created by the Federal Trade Commission to give parents control over what information is collected from their children online and how such information may be used.
The rule applies to web sites that knowingly collect information from children under 13. It considers three different types of web sites:
While there are slightly different regulations and triggers for each, the overall guidelines are the same. Here are key standards:
The rule applies to web sites that knowingly collect information from children under 13. It considers three different types of web sites:
- Sites directed to kids
- General audience sites
- General audience sites that have special areas for kids
While there are slightly different regulations and triggers for each, the overall guidelines are the same. Here are key standards:
- A privacy policy must be posted on the home page, and a link to the privacy policy must appear on every page where personal information is collected.
- Parents must be notified of the site's information collection practices, and the site must obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting personal information from children.
- Parents must have a choice about whether their child's personal information can be disclosed to third parties.
- Parents must have access to their child's personal information and the opportunity to delete the child's personal information and opt-out of future collection or use of the information.
- A child's participation in a game, contest or other activity must not depend upon disclosing more personal information than is reasonably necessary to participate in that activity.
- The site must maintain the confidentiality, security and integrity of personal information collected from children.
Read more details
Offical resources on COPPA
If you'd like to read more details on how COPPA works, who it applies to, and your rights as a parent, check out these links.
- FTC Privacy Initiatives
- The primary goal of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) Rule is to give parents control over what information is collected from their children online and how such information may be used. This page from the Federal Trade Commission gives a short, easy-to-read explanation.
- COPPA FAQ's
- This long list (54 questions in all!) of questions and answers give many details about COPPA for parents and web site operators. You might try reading it in sections so you can absorb the information.
What parents must know:
Web sites that collect info from children under age 13 MUST have verifiable parental consent.
Have you ever given "verifiable consent"?
Being involved with what your kids do online is essential for parents. We'd like to know...
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News from Internet-Safety at Yoursphere.com
Yoursphere.com is a teen social network that puts Internet safety first and gives parents peace of mind about what their kids are doing online. Check out the latest blog posts from our parent companion site.
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We at Yoursphere.com would like to hear your questions about COPPA. BTW, Yoursphere.com is one of the few social networking sites that exceeds COPPA requirements. We'd be happy to answer your questions about how we do it!
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- OhMe OhMe Jan 12, 2009 @ 2:37 pm
- Very interesting, indeed and very informative. Thank you for the information.
by AnneEasterling
Drupal web developer (especially theming!), community advocate for Yoursphere.com, the teen network that puts Internet safety first and gives parents... (more)
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