NY Settles With 4 Companies To Stop Tracking Children Online

The state attorney general announced settlements Tuesday with Viacom, Mattel, Hasbro and JumpStart Games to stop them from using or allowing tracking technology on their popular children’s websites.

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The settlements require Viacom, Mattel and JumpStart to pay penalties totaling $835,000 following a two-year investigation into violations of the 1998 federal law that prohibits unauthorized collection of children’s personal information on websites directed at users under 13. Hasbro won’t pay a penalty because it was enrolled in a Federal Trade Commission approved online-privacy program that had some problems, according to the attorney general’s office.

All four companies allowed tracking technology such as cookies on their websites in violation of the law, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said. Such technology can be used by marketers and advertisers to target potential customers.

“The way the law is structured, the companies have the primary obligation to police their sites,” Schneiderman said. “When we notified them, they took immediate action.”