FTC approves new COPPA verification method

A Federal Trade Commission letter has been issued approving an application describing a new method for companies (including financial institutions) to get parents' consent for their children to access online services covered by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) Rule. Under the COPPA Rule, online sites and services directed at children must obtain permission from a child’s parents before collecting personal information from that child. A financial institution that has a webpage for children is subject to the Rule. The Commission has approved the use of “face match to verified photo identification” (FMVPI) as a method to verify that the person providing consent for a child to use an online service is in fact the child’s parent.