On Wednesday, the Federal Trade Commission proposed sweeping changes to how Meta operates, accusing the company of violating a suite of child privacy protections, including the Children\u2019s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n In a press release<\/a>, the agency alleged that Meta violated a 2020 privacy order it had reached with the agency to resolve its role in the Cambridge Analytica scandal<\/a>. The\u00a0proposal cites instances in which the company misled parents on the extent of their abilities to control who their children communicate with over services like Messenger Kids<\/a> and misrepresented the access the company grants third-party app developers to private user data.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cFacebook has repeatedly violated its privacy promises,\u201d said Samuel Levine, FTC consumer protection bureau director. \u201cThe company\u2019s recklessness has put young users at risk and Facebook needs to answer for its failures.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The FTC\u2019s proposed changes would ban Meta, Facebook, and the rest of the company\u2019s properties from monetizing the data of children under 18 years old. It would also bar the company from launching new products or services without the green light from an independent privacy assessor and would require explicit user consent for any new uses of facial recognition technology.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n These new rules would apply to Facebook and Meta\u2019s other platforms, including Instagram, Oculus, and WhatsApp. It would also cover any new companies Meta could merge with in the future.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Responding to the FTC\u2019s Wednesday proposal, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone called it a \u201cpolitical stunt,\u201d accusing the agency of attempting to \u201cusurp the authority of Congress to set industry-wide standards.\u201d Later in the day, Meta published a longer version of the response on its company blog<\/a>, writing, \u201cNone of these issues warrant the drastic changes the FTC is seeking just three years into our decades-long agreement\u2013and that the FTC lacks unilateral authority to impose.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cFTC Chair Lina Khan\u2019s insistence on using any measure \u2014 however baseless \u2014 to antagonize American business has reached a new low,\u201d Stone said in a statement to The Verge <\/em>Wednesday. \u201cWe will vigorously fight this action and expect to prevail.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Despite voting to move forward with the proposal, Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya issued a statement casting doubt<\/a> on the FTC\u2019s authority to modify its orders in this manner. \u201cI look forward to hearing additional information and arguments and will consider these issues with an open mind,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n The alleged violations arose from an independent assessor\u2019s review of Meta\u2019s privacy protections. The assessor was first implemented following the 2020 order and put in charge of reviewing whether Meta\u2019s privacy protections met the FTC\u2019s standards. According to the FTC, the assessor \u201cidentified several gaps and weaknesses\u201d in the company\u2019s privacy practices. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n The FTC\u2019s proposal is just the first step in a process to heighten Meta\u2019s privacy and security practices. According to the Wednesday press release, the FTC has asked Meta to respond within 30 days to its findings and proposal. After receiving Meta\u2019s response, the agency would then vote on whether to alter or adopt the proposed rules.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Update May 5th, 12:45AM ET:<\/strong> Added <\/em>link to Meta\u2019s full response<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n