Coppa

How do I protect my website against fraud?

[GaryK]

I have read every Google listing for WW threads that deal with COPPA [ftc.gov]. I've read all the links to COPPA itself and the FAQ about it.

I cannot find the answer to one niggling little question:

How can I be certain the child is providing correct parental/guardian contact information and what legal exposure do I face if the child provides fraudulent contact information?

I can foresee a situation in which a ten year old signs up and provides what appears to be an e-mail address for contacting his/her parent or legal guardian. But in reality the e-mail address belongs to the child who then responds as if he/she were the parent/guardian. Surely there must be some provision of COPPA I missed that protects website operators against fraud.

Right now the site in question clearly states we are not COPPA compliant and nobody under thirteen may join. If we find out a member has lied about his/her age they are deleted immediately. In a way I like it like that because IMO it keeps the site more mature.

But the site does deal with a hobby that usually starts in childhood and attracts people of all ages. I'd like to let all of them participate. But not if it means I face criminal and/or civil legal exposure.

Comments, anyone? Thanks.

[pendanticist]

Very interesting question and deserving of a blatant bump!

:)

[GaryK]

Surely I can't be the only one running a website where having underaged children as members presents a legal problem. Would someone please help get a discussion going here regarding my highlighted question? Thanks! :)

[pendanticist]

Looks like maybe you're not. Least ways the question seems to have been partially answered in another forum. Which, btw - seems like the better place to post your original question. ;)

Thread from last week:
[webmasterworld.com...]
Maybe you and DrDoc can collaborate?

Pendanticist.

[GaryK]

Since nobody has been willing to help discuss this issue I've taken the matter into my own hands and contacted an attorney (not the one mentioned in the below link) who specializes in Internet law. I don't have an answer to my fraud question yet, but he is researching the issue for me.

I was shocked to see how serious the FTC is about COPPA. They have already levied hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines against some of America's biggest corporations for violating COPPA. Source [keytlaw.com].

I'm still amazed and slightly disappointed that with all the information there is out there about COPPA there is no mention of how the FTC deals with the issue I am most concerned about: fraud on the part of the child and the website owner's legal exposure in such a case.

I wonder if the FTC has been making this a vague issue on purpose, perhaps to lessen the chance a website owner can use it as a valid defense against alleged COPPA violations?

I hope to know more about any case law examples involving COPPA and fraud later today or, more likely, on Monday.