4A’s Submits Written Comments to FTC Rulemaking to Strengthen COPPA Regulations

On March 11, 2024, the 4A’s submitted written comments to the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) proposal to modify the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (“COPPA Rule”), a set of regulations that implement the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) statute. COPPA imposes certain requirements on operators of websites or online services directed to children under 13 years of age, and on operators of other websites or online services that have actual knowledge that they are collecting personal information online from a child under 13 years of age.

In general, 4A’s comments to the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) asked the FTC to tread carefully on any new children’s privacy rule that curtails the responsible use of consumer data to ensure the regulation’s effects do not outweigh the significant economic and competition benefits provided by digital advertising to U.S. consumers and the economy. In addition to reaffirming support for comments filed by the Privacy for America coalition,  4A’s comments specifically urged the FTC promulgate a final COPPA rule that 1) continues to allow contextual advertising as part of its internal operations exception; 2) eliminates proposed changes that require separate, verifiable consent for disclosure of a child’s personal information; 3) forgoes new additions to factors for the definition of “website or online service directed to children” that are outside of the control of the operator; 4) maintains and even expands the proposed “Text plus” consent mechanism; and 4) strikes notice requirements that seemingly mandate the disclosure of the names and specific categories of third parties and purposes of disclosure to such parties, among other recommendations.

Overall, the FTC seeks to strengthen and clarify the COPPA Rule in response to technological advances and changes in the way children interact online. In particular, the NPRM follows an initial public comment period in which the FTC noted novel issues affecting the COPPA Rule, including the educational technology sector, voice-enabled connected devices, and platforms directed to general audiences that host third-party content directed to children. 

The COPPA Rule, which was issued in 1999 and last amended in 2013, generally applies to “any operator of a Web site or online service directed to children, or any operator that has actual knowledge that it is collecting or maintaining personal information from a child.”

Have questions about the 4A’s comments or the proposed COPPA rule? Please contact Amanda Anderson, 4A’s VP of Government Relations.