On Monday (6/3) at Apple’s 2019 Worldwide Developers Conference, the company announced its new kid-focused privacy changes. Apple now requires developers to place advertisements, links that lead out of the apps and purchasing opportunities behind parental gates, which ideally can only be accessed by parents.
Additionally, once a mobile app is added in the App Store’s Kids Category, even if the developer later chooses to remove the app from the category, the app will still be required to follow the Kids Category's privacy requirements. This will ensure that all the apps that are labeled as being for-children when downloaded will remain so after all subsequent updates. Developers are also barred from using third-party advertising or analytics in apps that appear in the Kids Category (presumably to reduce tracking).
Last but not least, Apple urged developers to be mindful of privacy laws in the various jurisdictions where they collect data from kids.
These changes are definitely a step in the right direction, we will continue to monitor and update our readers whether Apple continues to make additional changes to address children's privacy.