Markey and Barton: Increasing Mobile Device Use by Youth Highlights Need for "Do Not Track Kids' Legislation

Statement

Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee and Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), co-chair of the Congressional Bi-partisan Privacy Caucus, released the following statement today after a new survey by Commonsense Media reported mobile device use by young children is increasing, even for babies, and that children are using devices for longer periods of time. The survey found that seven out of ten children under the age of eight have used a mobile device such as a tablet or smart phone, and those children spend triple the amount of time on mobile devices than in previous years. While in the House of Representatives, Senator Markey, with Rep. Barton introduced the "Do Not Track Kids' Act, bipartisan legislation that would update the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) for the 21st century, including prohibition of targeted advertising to children and teens 15 and younger, and ensuring kids and parents have an eraser button to delete their personal information online.

"In the 21st century parents now have to plan for their children to crawl, walk, run, and browse," said Senator Markey and Rep. Barton. "Increasing use of mobile devices by very young children coupled with rapid change in technological development makes it more important than ever to put federal legislation on the books that provides parents with the tools to protect their children online. The Do Not Track Kids legislation would update COPPA for this new Internet ecosystem, establish new protections for the personal information of children and teens and ensure that parents have the tools they need to protect their children's privacy."

Written in 1998, COPPA is the law that applies to operators of websites directed to children age 12 and younger that collect, use, or disclose personal information from children, or operators of general audience websites with actual knowledge they collect, use, or disclose personal information from children under 13.

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