Prevent Users from Sharing PII & Account Information
- By Marshall Bauernfeind
- Online Community
- March 5, 2013
Preventing users from sharing account information is a security concern as well as a way to prevent paid accounts from being shared. When hosting a virtual environment targeted to kids, you are also required to take reasonable measures to prevent users from sharing PII (Personal Identifiable Information) in accordance with COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act). The types of personal information include, but are not limited to, phone number, email address, and home address which cannot be shared in chat rooms, forum posts, and the like. Implementing all of the following prevention techniques will dramatically reduce your risk from users sharing account credentials and PII.
Educate Your Users
Will your users read your terms of service and privacy policy from start to finish? What if they are children? Probably not. Periodically remind users the importance of keeping private information private. First, display a notification each time users log in reminding them to never share their name, address, etc. Also, create quick and fun activities for your users to engage in informing them what not to share in the form of videos, short games, or other activities.
That's a Wrap! Digital Kids New York 2013
- By Sean Bryant
- Conferences
- February 26, 2013
If you blinked, you might have missed a little of the 7th Annual Digital Kids Conference. With Joi Podgorny and Richard Gottlieb running a tight ship, leading voices for online safety, digital marketing media directors and licensing professionals waited anxiously to speak and share their expertise over a quick but detailed two and half days. It is no wonder there is only one page left for notes in my binder.
Blogger Breakfast
Hosts of the Digital Kids Blogger Breakfast, Nancy Friedman and Rebecca Levey of KidzVuz started the week off with a bang. COPPA (pronounced KOHP/pah) was resonating in everyones ears. Laying the foundation, Inversoft’s CEO Brian Pontarelli shared his expertise on what exactly ‘Online Kids Safety’ entails. Denise Tayloe of PRIVO informed the unfamiliar on COPPA regulations for online providers, parents and most importantly, kids. A sound foundation to begin the week of events and panels.
Kids Safety Summit
kidSAFE Seal Founder and President Shai Samet presented multiple panels covering COPPA 2.0 changes and what that means for virtual worlds, social networks, online games and mobile apps. For those of you who missed it, one panel in particular, ‘Mobile Privacy Policy or Lawsuit’ started a crossfire of questions. If COPPA wants to prevent third parties from collecting information and advertising to kids 13 and below, what does that mean for push notifications? You could hear a pin drop.
Mark it on the calendar! COPPA 2.0 regulations take effect July 1, 2013.
5 Online Safety Tips to Teach Your Child
- By Sean Bryant
- Misc
- February 11, 2013
Here are 5 online safety tips that every parent should teach their child:
1. Don’t share PII (Personal Identifiable Information)
Teaching your child to share is great, but sharing their personal information online is a slippery slope. Make sure they understand friends online might not be who they say they are. Some of the things you should tell your child not to share are: their address, phone number, full name, the name of their school, names of close friends, pictures or videos of themselves, or any of their passwords.
What happens in the online world, doesn’t necessarily stay in the online world.