Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, PRIVACY NEWS: FTC’s public comment deadlines extended on two COPPA proposals, (Oct 24, 2013)
Organizations Mentioned:Imperium, LLC | Samet Privacy, LLC
By Tobias J. Gillett, J.D., LL.M.
In light of the temporary closure of the FTC during the recent partial government shutdown, the FTC has extended the deadline for public comments on two proposals under its Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule, the agency announced yesterday.
The FTC has set the deadline for comments on Imperium, LLC’s verifiable parental consent proposal for November 4, 2013, from its previous deadline of October 9. Imperium’s ChildGuardOnline would obtain the name and e-mail address of a parent or guardian from a child under 13 seeking to establish a user name and password for a website or mobile application. It would then send an e-mail to the provided address with a URL so the parent or guardian can view the site and a link for providing consent. To confirm a child’s identity and age, parents would be asked for the last four digits of his or her Social Security numbers and the name, address, and date of his or her birth. ChildGuardOnline will confirm the information “in real time,” while the parent is still on the site. Parents could visit the ChildGuardOnline portal at any time to review and, if desired, withdraw previously-granted consents.
The FTC has set the deadline for comments on Samet Privacy, LLC’s kidSAFE Seal COPPA safe harbor program for November 4, 2013, from its previous deadline of October 18. The FTC is seeking public comment about the proposed kidSAFE program; whether the proposed program provides “the same or greater protections for children” as those contained in the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule; whether the mechanisms used to assess operators’ compliance are effective; whether incentives for operators’ compliance with the guidelines are effective; and whether the program provides adequate means for resolving consumer complaints.
Comments on Imperium’s proposal may be filed online here, and comments on Samet Privacy’s kidSAFE proposal may be filed here.
Companies: Imperium, LLC; Samet Privacy, LLC
News: Privacy ConsumerProtection FederalTradeCommissionNews