Between new children's online safety regulations soon entering into force and a handful of recent enforcement actions brought by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, privacy professionals and other stakeholders are gaining insight into how the agency will conduct children's privacy enforcement activities under FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson.
Speaking virtually in an IAPP KnowledgeNet meeting 21 Jan., FTC Division of Privacy and Identity Protection Associate Director Ben Wiseman discussed recent developments at the agency with respect to promoting children's online safety. He said his division's focus is "privacy and data security all the time."
COPPA Rule
Wiseman said a major point of emphasis for the FTC in the year ahead will be enforcing the updated Children's Online Privacy Act Rule, which was amended in 2024 and represented the first major modification of the law since 2013.
The amended rule includes provisions for requiring opt-in consent on the part of parents for the sale of their children's personal data to third parties to engage in targeted advertising and limit the retention of children's personal data. Covered entities have until 22 April to comply with the updates.
Wiseman said stakeholders should "stay tuned" for new guidance on the amended COPPA Rule taking effect.
"This is an area of priority for the FTC right now," Wiseman said. "A significant amendment is the requirement to obtain separate, verifiable consent for third-party disclosures. (The amendment) is giving parents the right, or the option, to say no to operators who want to share personal information with third parties."
TAKE IT DOWN Act
Another new area of focus for the FTC, Wiseman said, is enforcing the recently passed TAKE IT DOWN Act. The law, signed in May 2025, criminalizes nonconsensual intimate deepfakes and requires platforms to remove such content. Platforms were advised to begin removal prior to the practice becoming mandatory this May.
According to Wiseman, the FTC will ensure compliance with the civil provisions of the law while the Department of Justice will handle the criminal provisions. The FTC's oversight will include ensuring covered platforms establish mechanisms for individuals to request removal of nonconsensual, deepfake intimate content and that platforms provide timely responses to qualified complaints.
"DPIP is going to be involved with these enforcement efforts," Wiseman said. "This is an issue the Commission takes very seriously and we are going to be prepared to enforce this statute on day one."
Age verification
Wiseman's remarks also feature a preview of the upcoming FTC workshop 28 Jan. that will convene researchers, academics, industry representatives, consumer advocates and government regulators to discuss the importance of age verification.
The workshop will delve into the pros and cons of certain age verification and age estimation tools, the regulatory environment around verification technologies and how COPPA is applied to existing tools.
"Age verification technology is really emerging," Wiseman said. "We're looking forward to hearing from a number of stakeholders in this space."
Wiseman also touched on several recent enforcement actions the FTC has undertaken, such as a joint lawsuit brought by the agency and the Utah Division of Consumer Protection against operators of adult websites that is still pending, as well as the USD20 million settlement with video game maker Cognosphere, in which the company agreed to block children under age 16 from making in-game purchases without parental consent.
While each of the cases was brought under a different set of facts, Wiseman indicated each enforcement action is reflective of larger trends FTC commissioners are seeing throughout the economy. He recommended companies subject to COPPA stay abreast of forthcoming agency enforcement decisions and settlements as a proactive measure to ensure their operations do not incur scrutiny for potential unlawful behavior.
"Keep your eye on recent complaints and orders that are coming out of the commission, because they really do signal the commissioners' priorities at the time and the marketplace issues they are seeing," Wiseman said. "If you're collecting personal information from children, pay particular attention to your obligations under COPPA and the amended COPPA Rule."
Alex LaCasse is a staff writer for the IAPP.
