Ep. 5 - The Age Verification and Child Safety Conundrum

On this episode of Privacy Chats with Rachel and John, we discuss one of the major conundrums facing the social media industry today: balancing privacy and security while maintaining adequate age verification mechanisms to ensure the protection of children online. Throughout the chat, we reflect upon the current federal children's online protection law, COPPA (the Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule), including its history, basic requirements, and practical limitations in today’s online environment. We also dive into the recently re-introduced Kids Online Safety Act ("KOSA"), a bill endorsed by US Senators Richard Blumenthal (D‑CT) and Marsha Blackburn (R‑TN) that aims to protect minors from online harms, particularly on social networking sites.