Buried in Meta’s $18B settlement is a legal pass on kids’ data
Meta’s settlement with 29 states allows it to retain certain data from children under 13 to train and test age-detection models, highlighting a privacy tradeoff built into the deal.
In Meta's recent $18 billion settlement with attorneys general from 29 states, a key provision allows the company to evade legal action over its handling of children's data. The agreement permits Meta to develop, train, and begin testing a model to identify users under the age of 13. This step must be completed within a year of the settlement's effective date.
The state Attorneys General have agreed not to challenge Meta under existing child safety laws regarding its data retention and use for the sole purpose of testing Meta's age-assurance model. However, the agreement also grants Meta the ability to avoid COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act) claims, which typically prohibit websites and apps from collecting and retaining children's personal information.
While data minimization precautions are common in privacy compliance, the specifics of what data Meta will retain and how long it will keep it are unclear. The agreement also stipulates that Meta should not use data from users under 13 for ad targeting, marketing, or algorithmic optimization. An independent auditor will oversee Meta's adherence to the settlement to address these ambiguities.
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