Sony Dinged $1 Million for Child-Privacy Breach

[The Straight Story]

Sony Dinged $1 Million for Child-Privacy Breach
By David Kravets EmailDecember 11, 2008 | 1:41:53 PMCategories: Privacy

Picture_10 Sony Music agreed Thursday to pay $1 million to settle allegations that it knowingly collected and disclosed personal information of as many as 30,000 children under the age of 13.

It matched the Federal Trade Commission's largest fine levied under the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. In 2006, the FTC dinged social-networking site Xanga.com $1 million on similar allegations. The settlement marked the 13th enforcement action the FTC has undertaken against companies for violating the act -- bringing to $3 milliion the amount in total fines.

According to an FTC lawsuit (.pdf) Sony unlawfully obtained and publicized personal information, including e-mail addresses and photos, from children under 13 via the registration process on its roughly 1,100 music sites.

Under the 1998 Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, known as COPPA, website operators must obtain the consent of parents or guardians before they may lawfully collect or publish personal identifying information of children under 13.

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/12/sony-dinged-1-m.html

[derby378]

1. Who convinced the Sony execs that violating privacy was good business sense?!?

Still, a $1 million fine is just a drop in the bucket to them.

Good to see you back, TSS. :hi:

[Blaze Diem]

2. Should have been more than 1 million....

petty cash.