COPPA — why should parents care?

On July 1, 2013, the latest set of FTC rules restricting what technology companies can do with children’s private information go into effect. Parents should care because these changes are massive, and focused on mobile applications in particular.

COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998) has been around for a long while.  The law itself is clear in its intent: to protect kids from falling prey to bad actors who want their information.  The rules around the law, which tell application developers how to comply, have been around for a long time, too.  Too long, as it turns out — they are ineffective with the advent of mobile devices.  So, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has come up with some brand new rules in their COPPA working group.  Those rules go into effect, as I mentioned, on July 1.  For brief and excellent description of the new rules, you might read this post by Scott Weiner.

As the CTO of Playrific, I’m pretty proud of our commitment to protecting kids online.  That is our company charter, after all.  Because I’m a dad, I have a personal interest in making things safer for kids to explore.  I spent this week in DC with a handful of other mobile app developers talking to the FTC about COPPA (and other things as well).  We met with the entire team working on the regulations, as well as two of the four commissioners at the FTC.

Association for Competitive Technology (ACT) with the FTC Team working on COPPA.

Playrific is a very active member of the Association for Competitive Technology (ACT).  On the right is a snapshot of a few of the ACT members meeting with the whole COPPA team this week.  The COPPA team is focused on what data gets collected without parental consent.  And that is a laudable goal.

Here’s why parents should care: this whole debate has become centered around advertising, not safety.  The advertising lobby got in on the game early, since they saw their life blood being pinched off.  Advertisers want to be able to target kids, and want to be able to adapt their advertising to kids’ behavior.  App developers are not thrilled about pushing ads to kids, but do so in order to avoid something worse: limiting their apps to kids who can afford to buy them.  Providing free, ad supported versions of apps, especially educational apps, is the best way we currently have to reach the broadest audience while still paying our staff.  Playrific resists this model, and has found other ways to fund its operations besides advertising to kids, but it’s a reality of life in 2013 that kids are going to be targeted by advertisers online.  So, it’s best to focus some attention on controlling it.

However, the focus on advertising has completely eclipsed the real problem, which we believe is data protection.  Having advertisements jammed in front of kids is annoying — especially ones tailored to a specific kid’s behavior patterns online.  Annoying, no question.  That is why we at Playrific don’t do it.  However, having data which is collected for legitimate reasons get leaked or hacked by bad actors is far worse than annoying; it’s downright dangerous.  I have spent the past 30 years creating and selling software for businesses big and small.  Businesses care about what happens to their data, and take serious steps to protect it from hacking and intrusion.  As a self-serving promotional statement, we at Playrific are extremely proud of the “back-end” data security measures we have taken to protect any data we have about our users.  Most app developers don’t — they simply are too new to software development, and often come from the entertainment side, where business software practices are foreign.  It’s not their fault, but it’s also not in a parent’s best interests.

Consider this question: imagine that you are an offender, and prey on kids — where is the best spot to find a list of kids with concentrated information about each one, including behavior patterns, and perhaps even a photo or two?  Online is certainly the answer; a very scary answer for parents.  Now, imagine you are that same bad actor, but you are clever; what do you do then?  Get a job at any of the 50,000+ app developers who gather this information in databases.  Or, hack into any of these databases, especially if they are lightly guarded.  Our conclusion is that the real danger to kids revolves around data protection, not around parental consent to advertising.  As a parent, the choice is clear between protecting my kid from an ad and protecting my kid from unwittingly disclosing their photo and current location (accurate to within 2 meters) to a bad actor.

Playrific gathers childrens’ behavior information for what we consider legitimate reasons: to help provide relevant educational and entertaining content to young kids — without ads or risk of navigating out into dangerous territory.  A large number of parents seem to agree with us that this is legitimate, if recent download numbers are an indicator.  But we don’t view download or usage numbers as an advertising windfall — we view them as a mandate to keep that data protected.  We believe it should receive more protection than healthcare data or financial data.  We take the trust parents give us extremely seriously.  One misstep and all is lost (in our view).  You will notice that I am not describing how we keep things safe and secure — that’s part of keeping the data safe and secure.  I can say that we run hourly, weekly, and monthly penetration testing to assure that those who need to stay out are kept out.  And we have very serious policies about who inside our company can see what data — and we expose as little data to as few people as possible.  And we research the backgrounds of each person with access.

We applaud the FTC in its efforts to protect kids.  We sympathize with the COPPA team because we both face the same issues surrounding keeping kids safe.  What we are discouraged by is the intense focus on whether advertisers can get access to kids’ behavior, and the relative complete disregard for protecting whatever data is ultimately collected.

What can parents do about all this?  First, if you agree that protecting concentrated databases of information on children is paramount, tell everybody you know, and then join us in engaging the US Congress, the US Senate, and the FTC to shift its focus from advertising to data protection.  Second, be on the lookout for industry-wide changes between now and July 1, when the new COPPA regulations go into effect.  You should see dramatic changes in how apps try to protect kids from advertising.  There are a hundred buzz words surrounding this topic, like Verifiable Parental Consent, and Age-Gating.  Forget the buzz words and ask yourself two questions after you install and set up an app:  (1) do I know what information this app collects about my child, and why they collect it, and (2) do I have any idea whether they protect the information they gather from exposure to bad actors — either employees or outside hackers?  Third, tell us how we can inform you better.  We’re parents, but we are also kind of nerdy.  It is certain that we can do a better job of informing you, and of keeping you involved in protecting your kids.  If you tell us how to improve, you may be assured that we’ll act on it.

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Playrific CEO & Daughter Review Epic The Movie

My daughter & I went to the preview of Epic last Saturday.  I thought it would be fun to have her write a review of the film and post it to the Playrific blog.  Unfortunately, since she is nine and has recently decided that everything I suggest is uncool, she refused to say a word, so in the spirit of a true pivoting entrepreneur, I’m going to imagine what I think she’d say below.

My mom & I went to see a preview of Epic together Saturday.  My mom is kinda like MK’s dad, a bit of a geek, really into her work, and sometimes oblivious with respect to “normal” things, but really smart.  She tells me stuff I don’t believe all the time and then it turns out to be true, soooooo Annoying!!!

Anyway about the film, you should see it, the main character MK is really cool, and she has a huge heart, just like me.  And she’s smart too and sometimes a bit awkward – another trait I unfortunately share with her.  She loves animals of all kinds, even her dad’s three-legged dog (mine has all four legs).

I’m not telling you what happened because I don’t want to ruin it for you, just go see it.  It’s got chase scenes through the forest, bad guys who never give up till…well if I tell you if they ever give up I’d give away the story, and lots of cool creatures who talk and people too.  It’s got a Queen and a General, something for both girls and boys, and even a little girl who gets her biggest wish, but now I’m telling you too much.  Just go see it!!!

If this hasn’t convinced you to run out and see Epic, you can check out trailers, clips and games from the movie at Playrific here http://playrific.com/t/12061/epic, or register for a free account at www.playrific.com and your child will receive a free Epic playpack.

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A New Trend: Standardized testing of Kindergarteners

An article in Reuters today “Five-year-olds put to the test as kindergarten exams gain steam” highlights a growing trend in kindergartens nationwide, introducing kids to standardized testing at an early age. Identified as an outgrowth of the “push to make public schools more rigorous and hold teachers more accountable,” the goal is to identify kids at risk and, also, their potential for success throughout their K-12 and college years.

According to the article, 25 states mandate at least one formal assessment during kindergarten. While advocates promote early testing as a way to identify kids who are likely to have problems going forward, opponents argue that the practice puts too much stress on kids at too early an age.

Many educators prefer assessment based on interaction and observation rather than standardized testing. School districts and state educational departments, however, are requiring standard exams across the schools they oversee.

What do you think about the trend? Is it good, bad or indifferent?

Please leave a comment and get the discussion going.

 

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Brave Girls

I went to see Disney Pixar’s Brave with my 8 year old daughter the weekend it came out.  We loved it for the action and the comedy but most of all we love it for the empowering role given to Merida the Princess and lead character.  She is brave in a Disney cartoon, don’t try this at home sort of way.  But she has a real personality and real goals as a person, as well as fierce loyalties and cool skills like archery and horse back riding.

Playrific has prepared the Brave Girls collection to celebrate brave girls of all sorts all over the world.  We applaud Disney and want to reinforce the empowering messages embedded in this fun and mainstream film.  Please show them to girls and boys alike and tell us what you think.

Add your comments here as well.

- Beth Marcus, CEO, Playrific


Our collection includes some really cute vignettes Disney Pixar made featuring the characters from Brave. These vignettes do not appear in the film.

All users (registered or not) can access the collection from the web console – just click on the “collection” list on the top of the page and select Brave – Movie.

Continue reading “Brave Girls” »

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An Olympian’s Parent’s Reflections

from Greg Stone, Playrific guest blogger and friend of Beth Marcus, our CEO

I am the proud father of Gevvie Stone, who represented the US at the London Games in the women’s single scull.  I have also been privileged to have been Gevvie’s coach over that past four years.  Together we have trained on the Charles, on rowing machines, cross country skiing, on bicycles and running Harvard Stadium.  She can beat me in everything now, but that was not the case when we began four years ago.

Gevvie Stone, Olympian, and Greg Stone

Gevvie Stone, Olympian, and Greg Stone, on the Charles

Stepping back, Gevvie was the least athletic of our three children before she was 12 or 13, although she always loved the social and exercise aspects of sports.  Like many suburban kids, she began on intra city soccer teams and added swimming and lacrosse as she got older.  Once in a great while she would go out in a double scull with me, but she did not begin rowing in earnest until her junior year of high school when she failed to make the varsity lacrosse team (or feared that she might fail).  With her height (six feet) and boating background, we suspected that she would be a natural.  Her two high school boats, coached by her mother, were national champions.

After failing to make the 2008 Olympic Team, Gevvie entered Tufts Medical School and began to scull on the Charles.  Success that first fall in “Head races” (over longer courses with boats starting one at a time) convinced her to give it another go, in the single.  As  coach, I was convenient and free.  After two years of med school she took a two year leave of absence to concentrate on the rowing.

There are some inherent advantages one has in coaching their children.  You know them so well, emotionally and physiologically, that you have a huge advantage over a new coach.  You are also willing to go the extra mile without thought.  If I were a professional coach, I don’t know if I would be as patient with the inevitable disappointments and tears, or if I would spend quite so much time just hanging out.  There have also been lessons to learn.  In her first year, when I pushed her off for a big race in Europe, I would look at the competition and the difficult factor and have a parent’s empathy, and often say, “However you do, I love you.”  She hated that, and it apparently is not too inspiring.  A lot of that empathy and love had to be shed, or buried.  I learned to define her goals in absolute terms, and to demand performance (sort of.)  Also, as her coach, it was also hard for me to get any respect, or help, from the US Rowing establishment.  The managers and professional coaches did not give me any credibility as a coach and perhaps such a relationship threatened them in some way.  However, we have always been more accepted as a team in Europe, where parent –child teams are more common.

The Olympics themselves were a spectacular show and a wonderful opportunity to meet and race with the best.  The British were excellent hosts.  All of us would relive it in a second.

R. Gregg Stone

 

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One Parent’s Olympic Dreams

Thoughts on parenting from a former Olympic hopeful and current mom (who is also Playrific’s CEO)

When I was a child, sports and the Olympics were everything to me. I started competitive swimming when I was 10, going to the Y on 14th street in NYC many times a week and often reeking of chlorine which never seemed to disappear from my hair or skin.

My first big win was a national mail-in title for 10 year olds in breaststroke. I dreamed of Olympic gold. I went to swimming training camp in NJ and then upstate NY. When I was 12 I went to a school for gifted kids which had no swimming program. My coaches begged my parents to move to Florida or California so that I could start the progression to the Olympics.

My father is and was a dentist requiring licensing and building a practice to move, so the answer was no.

Hunter (my school) was at 45th and Lexington and the only sport they had was Tennis played at the courts in Grand Central Station at 6 AM.  I didn’t hesitate, I was in. My goal was the US Open tennis championships. Beth Marcus, Tennis PlayerMy father had competed in that when he was about 17. I did make it to Forest Hills repeatedly, but as a ball girl to greats like Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova and it was wonderful and inspiring.

I could go on with talk of Crew in college, and track and field when I’d used up eligibility in swimming in College, or bike racing in the UK in grad school. But what I wanted to talk about kids & sports & my daughter in particular.

I had hopes that she would fall in love with water and swimming and dream of gold so i started her at 6 months with lessons. I am not a parent that pushes and it seems my daughter is intellectually curious and competitive and sports for her is all about fun. So the trophies and medals and photos are in the attic and I follow my daughters interests hoping that by giving her lessons whenever she takes an interest, first in golf and now in tennis she will find a sport she loves that will last a lifetime, competitively or not  She still takes swimming lessons in the summer at age 8 and will until completely safe in the water. Her passion is music. (She began begging for singing lessons from age 3 till age 5 when I gave in.)

So why am I telling you this? My daughter’s presence and smiles, jokes and laughs are gold enough for me. I wish all the Olympians and their families the best and wish for the children that whatever their passion, independent of their parents interests they get to follow their dreams and develop their passions.

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