children's online privacy and rights

@petten | npetten@marsdd.com

CHILDREN’S ONLINE PRIVACY AND RIGHTSNICK PETTEN !@PETTEN NPETTEN@MARSDD.COM WWW.NICKPETTEN.COM

AGENDA: 1. Trends

2. Legislation

3. Questions and discussion

4. Ethical and Pedagogical issues

5. Questions and discussion

TRENDS IN THE MARKETPLACE

• Over 80% of the top selling paid apps in the Education category of the iTunes Store target children from toddlers to high school (Shuler, 2012)

• 58% of apps target toddler and preschool age children (Shuler, 2012)

USAGE BY CHILDREN

• 30% of 3-5 year old children use the Internet compared to 50% of 6-9 year olds

• 46% of the 12 year-olds surveyed in a 2010 Pew study reported using a social network site (Lenhart et al., 2010)

REPORT FROM COMMON SENSE MEDIA 2013

• Children’s access to mobile media devices is dramatically higher than it was two years ago.

REPORT FROM COMMON SENSE MEDIA 2013

• Almost twice as many children have used mobile media compared to two years ago, and the average amount of time children spend using mobile devices has tripled.

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THE NUMBERS

• There is a big difference between ages. Children are not a homogenous group and are as diverse as any other group.

• There is a growing market with younger children going online and using apps.

FTC: LITTLE PROGRESS ON PRIVACY AND DISCLOSURE

• A 2012 report from the FTC called, “Mobile Apps for Kids: Disclosures Still Not Making the Grade” which surveyed 400 apps in the marketplace

• 80% of the apps apparently did not disclose any information about the apps privacy practices prior to download.

• 60% of the apps transmitted the device ID to the developer, an advertising network, an analytics company, or other third party.

• 58% of the apps contained in-app advertising, but only 15% of the apps disclosed information about the presence of advertising.

LEGISLATION

• COPPA: Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act

• PIPEDA: Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act

• Consumer Protection Act in Quebec

COPPA: CHILDREN’S ONLINE PRIVACY PROTECTION ACT• Applies to:

• operators of commercial websites and online services (including mobile apps) directed to children under 13 that collect, use, or disclose personal information from children

• operators of general audience websites or online services with actual knowledge that they are collecting, using, or disclosing personal information from children under 13

• websites or online services that have actual knowledge that they are collecting personal information directly from users of another website or online service directed to children

COPPA: THE RULES

• clear and comprehensive privacy policy describing information practices

• provide direct notice to parents and obtain parental consent

• parental choice to the internal use of information, but prohibiting from disclosing to third parties

• parental access to child’s information to review and/or delete

COPPA: THE RULES

• give parents the opportunity to prevent further use and collection

• maintain confidentiality, security, and integrity of the information

• retain information collected for only as long as is necessary to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected and then delete it

COPPA: CASE STUDIES

• Path

• improperly accessing contact data and registering children under the age of 13

• $800,000 fine

• required a comprehensive privacy program which must be audited every two years for the next 20 years

COPPA: CASE STUDIES

• Artist Arena

• registered approximately 25,000 child users without notifying parents and obtaining consent

• $1 million settlement

• the content of the website attracted young children

COPPA: CASE STUDY

• Broken Thumbs Apps

• collecting children’s personal information without parental consent and used for marketing purposes

• fined $50,000

COPPA: SAFE HARBOR PROGRAM

• allows industry groups to provide ‘FTC-approved’ certifications

• Truste

• Privo

• KidsSafe

CANADIAN LEGISLATION: PIPEDA

• PIPEDA: Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act

• recognizes an individual’s right to privacy and that a company can only use or disclose personal information that a reasonable person would consider appropriate

• as a business are you providing enough information that users are able to give their informed consent?

CANADIAN LEGISLATION: PIPEDA

• Privacy Commissioner: children are not likely able to provide meaningful consent

• Supreme Court of Canada: “[r]ecognition of the inherent vulnerability of children has consistent and deep roots in Canadian law” and that “[t]his results in protection for young people’s privacy” in several legislative areas.

QUEBEC’S CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT

• prohibits commercial advertising directed at persons under the age of 13

• General Mills pleaded guilty for advertising Lucky Charms cereal on a Lucky Charms website that included games

• presenting advertisements to children when they interacted with their avatar

• encouraging children them to join a paid subscription and purchase products

CANADIAN AND US LEGISLATION

• Questions?

ETHICAL AND PEDAGOGICAL ISSUES

• Businesses are increasingly creating and influencing the experiences of childhood

• this is problematic if the sole purpose of a business is to maximize profit without ethical regard for children’s well-being and learning objectives

• Unethical practice: False claims that using a product or service will help children learn something

• Recommendation: Don’t make claims that you can back up through scientific evidence

• Unethical practice: using children’s personal information to send targeted advertising and marketing

• Recommendation: don’t use children’s information for anything other than the stated purpose of your product or service

• Unethical practice: not disclosing how personal information is being used

• Recommendation: address and design privacy safeguards at the beginning (or as soon as possible) of your business venture

• Unethical practice: conditioning a child’s behaviour through in-app activities for monetary gain

• Recommendation: carefully consider how users might make in-app purchases and what leads them to make that decision.

PRACTICAL WAYS OF BECOMING A CHILD-FRIENDLY BUSINESS

Understand and follow applicable law

Do the research to understand your impact on children

Actively design and implement child-friendly business practices

Adopt a children’s rights framework

LEVELS OF ENGAGEMENT

CHILDREN’S RIGHTS AND BUSINESS PRINCIPLES

• Partnership between UNICEF, UN Global Compact and Save the Children

QUESTIONS?

THANK YOU!

• please contact myself or someone from MaRS in the education group for more information

• npetten@marsdd.com

• follow me on Twitter at @petten where I regularly post items on this subject

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