Stars’ Websites Collected Children’s Information

The operator of websites for several music stars who appeal to tweens illegally collected information from children under 13 and agreed to a fine of $1 million.

 The websites for Justin Bieber, Rihanna, Demi Lovato, and Selena Gomez violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting the names, addresses, email addresses, birth dates, gender, and other information for children under 13 without obtaining their parents’ consent.  The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) found that Artist Arena LLC registered over 25,000 children and collected and maintained personal information from another 75,000, who did not complete the websites’ registration process.

In the complaint, the FTC stated that children under 13 were able to register for paid fan clubs and subscribe to free online newsletters after submitting personal information online.  The FTC found that the websites did not provide parents with direct notice of its information collection practices and failed to obtain verifiable parental consent prior to collecting, using, or disclosing children’s personal information.

In addition, the FTC found that even when the children failed to complete the online registration process, the information was kept.

Artist Arena entered into a consent decree in which it agreed to pay the FTC $1 million, delete all personal information improperly collected and maintained for children under 13, and include a link on its websites to an FTC publication about protecting children’s privacy.

United States of America v. Artist Arena, LLC, S.D.N.Y. No. 12 CV 7386.