Privacy & Information Security Law Blog

On August 15, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it is seeking public comment regarding a proposed mechanism to obtain verifiable parental consent in accordance with the new Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (the “COPPA Rule”) that came into effect July 1, 2013. The COPPA Rule requires operators of certain websites and online services to obtain a parent’s consent before collecting personal information online from a child under 13.

In addition to the COPPA Rule’s acceptable methods for obtaining the required parental consent, the FTC’s revisions to the Rule now allow entities to propose their own parental consent mechanisms that may be approved by the Commission. The FTC has invited interested parties to comment on AssertID’s proposal by September 20, 2013.

Update: On November 13, 2013, the FTC announced that it denied AssertID’s proposal.