We already know that nowadays, online privacy is almost reduced to the minimum, and we also have knowledge of some companies and major agenciesthat like to follow our virtual trail. What many people don’t realize enough is that all this internet snooping is affecting our children more than anyone else, as technology becomes easier to use and they don’t realize which dangers are lurking. Recently, four major toy corporations were fined over cases of tracking the online movements of children accessing their website, something that, according to Eric Schneiderman, New York Attorney General, is a plain violation of the law.
The companies affected by this accusation will have to pay a combined fine of nearly $850,000as their websites are in violation of COPPA, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. Hasbro, JumpStart Games, Mattel and Viacom are the corporations behind some of the most popular kids websites such as Nickelodeon, Hot Wheels, Barbie, Neopets, My Little Pony, Littlest Pet Shop among many others. Schneiderman’s two-year investigation led to the conclusion that those websites used cookies to track the moves of those who access them, which could later be potentially used by advertisers to target future customers. As stated in COTTA back in 1998, all data and traffic tracking of children under 13 years old is illegal and therefore all the aforementioned, except Hasbro, are deemed to pay these large amounts of money. The reason why this latter is not affected by such penalty is due to an online privacy program the company was signed up for and that was previously approved by the Federal Trade Commission. Nonetheless, it was still accused of breaking the law as it was indeed tracking its youngest visitors for later advertisement purposes.
Regardless, all companies acted instantly to amend and try to forget this embarrassing situation as the NY attorney stated that “the way the law is structured, the companies have the primary obligation to police their sites” and “when we notified them, they took immediate action.”
The four affected companies have therefore signed agreements that according to Schneiderman are aimed at “regularly scanning their children’s websites to screen advertisers (…) and other data collection practices” to comply and be able to update with their own individual privacy policies.
If you’re a parent, you know how worried you are when kids are online – or at least you should be – and since nowadays they pretty much live inside the internet you must take further measures to protect them from all sorts of danger. Therefore, an important talk and proper education regarding the online world’s dark corners is needed as they can be very ingenious and easily tricked, with potentially high risks not only for your device but for your bank account and for their physical integrity as well.
In addition, there is another easy trick you can apply that they won’t even notice. If you configure a VPN on your router you can protect all devices within the range of your private network which will make them surf anonymously and visit such websites without the chance of being tracked by the website itself or any third-party. Furthermore, this is also useful as you’ll be able to circumvent geo-blocks and watch your favorite Netflix series regardless of where you live besides conducting secure bank account management for example with all your online data efficiently encrypted.
Share your thoughts, ask questions, and connect with other users. Your feedback helps our community make better decisions.
©2012-2025 Best Reviews, a clovio brand –
All rights
reserved
