FTC lays out new ID rules for collecting online data on children

Thanks to advances in technology, more people than ever before have been able to find information on the internet. More often, it's the younger generations who have been eager to jump on this trend, leaving them open to be targeted by marketers. However, in recent identity authentication news, the Federal Trade Commission released proposed amendments to the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, to better regulate what companies can do. The new guidelines are open for public comment until November 28 of this year, "One of the most significant proposed changes to the COPPA Rule is to the definition of 'personal information.' The definition of 'personal information' is important as the COPPA Rule only applies to operators whose websites or online service are directed to children or who have actual knowledge that they are collecting personal information from a child under the age of thirteen," Eric Bukstein, an attorney at Hogan Lovells, wrote on the firm's blog. According to a recent study by ID Analytics, approximately 500,000 minors in the U.S. have had their identity stolen by their own parents. Having proper ID authentication software can be an effective way to reduce the threat of information being stolen and used.