Disney to pay $10 million fine after FTC says it allowed data collection on kids

WASHINGTON — The Walt Disney Co. will pay a $10 million fine to settle a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit alleging it allowed personal data to be collected on kids under 13, violating federal law.

The FTC said Tuesday Disney violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, which requires kid-oriented apps and websites to get parents’ consent before collecting personal information of children under 13.

According to the complaint, Disney failed to properly label some videos that it uploaded to YouTube as “Made for Kids.” The mislabeling allowed Disney, through YouTube, to collect personal data from children under 13 viewing child-directed videos and use that data for targeted advertising to children, the FTC said. That's because, since the videos weren't labeled as being for kids, they included targeted advertising.

Representatives for Disney did not immediately return a message for comment.

Google, the parent company of YouTube, agreed to pay $170 million in a similar settlement in 2019.