The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (or COPPA) was first introduced back in 1998, but you don't have to look very far to realize the internet has changed quite a bit since then. Today, the FTC is attempting to address some of those changes by introducing the first major revision to the act. Among the biggest changes is that operators of websites or online services will now have to seek permission directly from parents in order to collect information from anyone under the age of 13 when they have "actual knowledge that they are collecting personal information through a child-directed website or online service."
