Alphabet Inc’s Google will spend up to $200 million to settle a Federal Trade Commission investigation into YouTube’s alleged violation of a children’s privacy law. Politico reported the settlement is expected to be between $150 million and $200 million. The settlement is set to be announced next week and will be the largest ever fine imposed for violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule by collecting personal information from kids without parental consent.
Katharina Kopp, deputy director of the Center for Digital Democracy, said: “a settlement amount of $150-200 million would be woefully low, considering the egregious nature of the violation, how much Google profited from violating the law.” In April 2018, the center, joined by other groups, filed an FTC complaint alleging YouTube profited from kids without first providing direct notice to parents and obtaining their consent. The FTC voted 3-2 to approve the settlement and sent it to the Justice Department as part of the review process.
