Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, PRIVACY NEWS: FTC approves kidSAFE’s COPPA safe harbor program, (Feb 12, 2014)

By Jeffrey May, J.D.

The FTC has approved the kidSAFE Seal Program as a safe harbor program under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and the agency’s COPPA Rule. Today, the FTC announced that it had determined that the kidSAFE safe harbor program provides “the same or greater protections for children” as those contained in the COPPA Rule; effective mechanisms used to assess operators’ compliance; effective incentives for operators’ compliance with the guidelines; and an adequate means for resolving consumer complaints.

In August 2013 letter to the FTC, the founder and president of Samet Privacy, LLC’s kidSAFE Seal Program sought approval of its “safety certification service and seal-of-approval program designed exclusively for children-friendly websites, mobile applications, tablet devices, and other similar interactive services and technologies.” According to the letter, the program already had 100 participating members and was becoming a globally-recognized icon and industry standard for online safety and privacy.

The Commission’s COPPA Rule requires operators of online sites and services directed at children under the age of 13 to provide notice and obtain permission from a child’s parents before collecting personal information from that child. The COPPA safe harbor provision provides flexibility and promotes efficiency in complying with the Act by encouraging industry members or groups to develop their own COPPA oversight programs.

The COPPA law also directs the Commission to review and approve self-regulatory program guidelines that would serve as safe harbors. Website operators that participate in a COPPA safe harbor program will, in most circumstances, be subject to the review and disciplinary procedures provided in the safe harbor’s guidelines in lieu of formal FTC investigation and law enforcement.

Approval of the kidSAFE Seal Program as a safe harbor program follows a public comment period that was announced in September 2013. Due to the partial government shutdown, the agency extended the comment period through November 3, 2013. The FTC received a dozen comments on the proposal. One comment from the Center for Digital Democracy, urged the agency to require more information from the applicant before deciding whether to approve the proposed safe harbor program.

Companies: Samet Privacy, LLC

News: ConsumerProtection Privacy FederalTradeCommissionNews