The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) typically reviews its rules every 10 years,
but due to the rapid changes in technology, including the expanding use of
education technology, the committee has decided to ask for comments on the
amendments it made to the Children's Online Privacy Protection act (COPPA) in 2013. COPPA first went into effect in
2000 and its purpose is to protect children’s privacy by giving parents tools
to control what information is collected from their children online. In
addition to standard questions about the effectiveness of the COPPA Rule and
whether it should be retained or modified, the FTC is seeking comment on all
major provisions of the COPPA Rule, including its definitions, notice and
parental consent requirements, exceptions to verifiable parental consent, and safe
harbor provision.
The FTC will hold a public workshop on October 7, 2019 to examine
the COPPA Rule.
Some of the specific
questions on which the FTC is seeking comment, along with info on the FTC and
COPPA can be found here.