Khan emphasized that the work includes “toughened enforcement” of the COPPA, as well as the scrutiny of social media algorithms that target younger demographics.
“Children’s Privacy is Enormously Important”
Children’s privacy online has been a central topic for the past two years, with privacy advocates and whistleblowers drawing attention to Big Tech surveillance, as well as cyberbullying, harassment, and negative body image issues connected to social media engagement. The chairwoman told AP reporters Wednesday that the impact of social media on kids is increasingly alarming, which is why it is the FTC’s mission to “vigorously protect children’s privacy and protect them from data abuses.” Last year, former Facebook employee Frances Haugen‘s public criticism of Meta’s (then Facebook) incorrect user privacy approach also caused a stir. As such, recent years have seen Big Tech social media juggernauts such as Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok called to court over children’s data protection. Similar scrutiny in the UK led to Age Appropriate Design legislation being passed last year.
A Big Year Ahead
Apart from focusing on how children’s data is mishandled, Khan also stressed the need to curb any Big Tech abuse of a dominant market position. “They can in some ways become too big to care — and start imposing all kinds of terms and contractual conditions on consumers,” she told the AP. In a separate interview, Khan told The Hill that the FTC has a very active year ahead of it in regards to children’s privacy and Big Tech. While the regulatory agency continues to enforce existing data protection laws, it will be considering new rules regarding commercial data collection practices. “There are a whole set of major policy initiatives that we have underway that we’re expecting will come to fruition over this next year,” Khan said. Meanwhile, U.S. Congress released a bipartisan draft bill that may suggest an “American Data Privacy and Protection Act,” is on the way, Politico reported last week. The bill could set a standard for the U.S. in increasing online data privacy protections for individuals under the age of 17, bringing the U.S. “closer to par,” with Europe’s internationally known GDPR law.
About FTC Chair Lina M. Khan
Lina Khan, who was appointed as the youngest-ever head of the FTC just last year under Joe Biden, is spearheading this work. She is a well-known critic of Big Tech with a no-holds-barred, cast-iron approach to upholding ethics and morals when it comes to privacy in the industry. For more information about the relationship between social media and youth, check out our article on how to keep social media safe for kids. For a wider overview of U.S. privacy concerns, have a look at our survey of Republicans’ and Democrats’ views about online privacy under the Biden administration.
