Mobile Apps for Kids

In February 2012, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) staff issued a report on a survey of mobile "apps" offered for children in Apple's App Store and Google's Android Market, the two largest U.S. app stores. The report, Mobile Apps for Kids: Current Privacy Disclosures are Disappointing, found that little or no information was available to parents about the privacy practices and interactive features of the mobile apps surveyed prior to download. As a result, the report called on all members of the kids' app ecosystem - app stores, developers, and third parties that interact with the apps - to provide greater transparency about the data practices and interactive features of apps geared to children. The report stated that FTC staff would conduct a follow-up survey in six months to evaluate whether and how industry had addressed the concerns raised. FTC staff conducted its follow-up survey during the summer of 2012. Like the first survey, the new survey examined the disclosures that apps provided about their privacy practices and interactive features, such as links to social media. However, the new survey went a step further by testing the apps' practices and comparing them to the disclosures made. Specifically, the new survey examined whether the apps included interactive features or shared kids' information with third parties without disclosing these facts to parents. The answer: Yes, many apps included interactive features or shared kids' information with third parties without disclosing these practices to parents. Since issuing the first kids' app report, the Commission has continued to promote consumer protections in mobile technologies by engaging in a host of policy, enforcement, and educational initiatives. Additionally, other government agencies, including the California Attorney General and the U.S. Department of Commerce, have launched efforts to increase transparency in the mobile marketplace, and several trade associations have issued selfregulatory guidelines or launched initiatives regarding mobile app privacy and related issues. Likewise, Apple and Google recently announced changes to their app stores that may address concerns about the failure to post privacy policies and the transmission of personal information by apps.