Disney was ordered to pay $10 million after the federal government claimed that children’s data was collected without parental consent
The U.S. Department of Justice announced that the Walt Disney Company has agreed to pay a $10 million civil penalty to resolve claims that it violated U.S. children’s privacy laws in relation to online video that was shared on YouTube. Disney allegedly failed to appropriately designate certain movies as being aimed at children, which permitted the acquisition of personal information from children under the age of 13 without parental agreement. This led to the complaint.
Disney “failed to properly label certain uploaded videos as ‘Made for Kids,’ which enabled the collection of personal data from children under 13 without adequate parental consent,” according to the government’s complaint, which the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) forwarded to the Justice Department, according to Reuters. Regulators claimed that the mislabeling allowed targeted advertising to minors and exposed young viewers to aspects that are typically prohibited by laws governing child-directed content.
The fine resolves claims that Disney broke the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), a federal law that mandates that websites, apps, and online services that gather personal information from children under the age of 13 must first warn parents and get their verifiable consent. In order to guarantee future compliance with COPPA’s standards in its YouTube activities, Disney is also required by the settlement to set up a compliance program.
“Disney has a long tradition of embracing the highest standards of compliance with children’s privacy laws, and we remain committed to investing in the tools needed to continue being a leader in this space,” the animated studio said in reaction to the case.
The settlement, which completes terms first disclosed earlier this year, highlights heightened regulatory scrutiny of how big media corporations categorize and handle content targeted at children on the internet.
This fine is part of a larger trend of COPPA enforcement, which aims to prohibit data collecting without parental knowledge or agreement in order to protect children’s privacy in the digital age.
