On Wednesday, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission announced a $5.7 million agreement with video social networking app Musical.ly (now TikTok) to settle alleged violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. The settlement surpasses a December 2018 agreement between the New York Attorney General’s office and Oath as the largest fine for COPPA violations by any enforcement agency. Noteworthy in the settlement is a joint statement from Commissioners Rohit Chopra and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter — published with the stipulated order — that suggests the FTC may investigate individual corporate officers in future cases of egregious conduct. "As we continue to pursue violations of law, we should prioritize uncovering the role of corporate officers and directors and hold accountable everyone who broke the law," Chopra and Slaughter wrote in their joint statement. In this latest installment in the IAPP Westin Research Center FTC Casebook, Westin Fellow Mitchell Noordyke, CIPP/E, CIPP/US, analyzes the settlement and what the commissioners' joint statement could mean for future enforcement of corporate officers. (IAPP member login required.)
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