Security News > 2020 > June > Researchers create tool for protecting children’s online privacy

A University of Texas at Dallas study of 100 mobile apps for kids found that 72 violated a federal law aimed at protecting children's online privacy.

Dr. Kanad Basu, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science and lead author of the study, along with colleagues elsewhere, developed a tool that can determine whether an Android game or other mobile app complies with the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act.

Basu said games and other apps that violate COPPA pose privacy risks that could make it possible for someone to determine a child's identity and location.

"Suppose the app collects information showing that there is a child on Preston Road in Plano, Texas, downloading the app. A trafficker could potentially get the user's email ID and geographic location and try to kidnap the child. It's really, really scary," Basu said.

COPPA requires that websites and online services directed to children obtain parental consent before collecting personal information from anyone younger than 13; however, as Basu's research found, many popular apps do not comply.

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