Protecting Your Children's Privacy Online

Children face distinct online privacy risks: aggressive data collection by apps and games, exposure to inappropriate contacts, and identity theft that may not be discovered until they try to open a bank account as an adult. Each of these requires a different type of protection.

What COPPA Requires

The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act requires websites, apps, and online services directed at children under 13 to:

• Post clear privacy policies describing what information is collected
• Obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting personal information from children
• Allow parents to review and delete their child's information
• Not condition participation on collecting more information than necessary

If an app or website has violated COPPA, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov or ftc.gov/coppa.

Children aged 13 and older have fewer automatic legal protections, but many of the practical protections below apply regardless of age.

Protecting Against Data Collection in Apps and Games

Many free games and apps for children are funded by advertising and collect significant amounts of data, sometimes in violation of COPPA.

Review app permissions before installing. Check what a children's app requests access to before downloading: location, contacts, microphone, camera. Most children's games do not need location or microphone access.

Check the privacy policy. Reputable children's apps have clear, simple privacy policies. If a policy is absent or incomprehensible, look for an alternative.

Use child accounts. Both Apple (Screen Time with Family Sharing) and Google (Family Link) offer child account features that restrict app purchases and provide parental oversight of installed apps.

Safe Social Media Use

Most major social platforms require users to be at least 13. If your child uses social media:

• Review their privacy settings together. Default settings are rarely the most private.
• Set accounts to private (followers must be approved)
• Review their friend/follower list periodically
• Talk about what is appropriate to share publicly, full name, school, location, and daily schedule should not be public
• Discuss the permanence of online posts

Device-Level Controls

Screen Time (iPhone): Settings → Screen Time. Set app limits, content restrictions, and communication limits. Requires a separate Screen Time passcode.

Google Family Link (Android): Allows parents to approve app downloads, set screen time limits, and view their child's location.

Router-level filtering: Services like Circle or built-in router parental controls filter content at the network level, covering all devices on the home Wi-Fi.

Freeze Your Child's Credit Now

Child identity theft is common and often goes undetected for years because children do not apply for credit. By the time your child turns 18 and tries to open a bank account or apply for a student loan, fraudulent accounts may already exist in their name.

Each of the three major credit bureaus allows parents to place a freeze on a child's credit file. This prevents anyone from opening credit in their name. You will need the child's Social Security number, birth certificate, and proof of your guardianship.

• Equifax: 1-800-349-9960
• Experian: experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/adding-freeze-to-your-childs-credit-file
• TransUnion: 1-888-909-8872

Conversations That Matter More Than Settings

Settings help, but children who understand why privacy matters make better decisions when you are not there. Key conversations:

• What personal information is safe to share online (and what is not)
• How to recognise when an adult online is behaving inappropriately
• That nothing shared online is truly private or permanent
• That they can come to you without judgment if something online makes them uncomfortable