Meta will receive limited protection from participating state attorneys general over its use of children’s data to develop age-assurance technology under its multibillion-dollar child-safety settlement. The agreement requires Meta to build, train, and begin testing a system that can identify users under 13 within one year, while restricting how the data used for that work can be applied elsewhere.
The provision sits alongside the broader settlement announced by Meta, which includes new restrictions for younger Facebook and Instagram users and independent compliance audits. Meta has not admitted wrongdoing under the agreement.
States Agree Not to Bring Certain COPPA Claims
The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, generally limits how online services collect and retain personal information from children under 13. Meta’s agreement says developing its age-assurance system should not require violating COPPA, but participating attorneys general also agreed not to bring certain past, present, or future claims related to children’s data when Meta uses it within the permitted age-assurance work.
That protection is limited. Meta cannot use data belonging to children under 13 for advertising, marketing, or algorithmic optimization, according to the settlement terms reported by TechCrunch.
Philip N. Yannella, a partner at Blank Rome, said restrictions that isolate data for specific compliance purposes are common in privacy programs. He noted, however, that COPPA is a federal law primarily enforced by the Federal Trade Commission, which is not a party to the settlement.
Independent Auditor Will Review Meta’s Compliance
The agreement requires Meta to keep data and behavioral signals used for age assurance separate from other uses inside the company. An independent auditor will review Meta’s compliance with the settlement annually for five years.
The agreement does not specify exactly what children’s data Meta will retain for model training, how much behavioral information will be included, or how long individual categories of data will be kept.
Joshua Wurtzel, a partner at Schlam Stone & Dolan, said the legal protection would no longer apply if Meta used the information outside the boundaries established by the settlement. Any future dispute could therefore depend on whether a particular use of children’s data falls within the permitted age-assurance activities.
Peter Jackson, a Data and IP attorney at Greenberg Glusker, said the carve-out could discourage some future enforcement actions by states. Meta’s current age-detection systems already use AI to identify accounts that may belong to younger users even when the account lists an adult birth date.
Featured image credits: Wikimedia Commons
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