Google has just agreed to pay $30 million in a preliminary settlement, pursuant to a proposed class action lawsuit in California, to resolve allegations that YouTube collected personal information from children, without obtaining parental consent and used it to provide targeted advertisements.
The settlement awaits approval from U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan van Keulen. If approved, it will mark an initiative toward resolving the allegations and compensating those affected.
Ronin Legal examines the settlement.
The Allegations Behind the Settlement
In C.H. et al v. Google LLC et al, the guardians of thirty-four children have collectively accused Google of various state law violations.
They claim that the platform enabled content providers, including DreamWorks Animation, Cartoon Network, Hasbro, and Mattel to lure children by using cartoons and rhymes to collect their personal information. A data protection law firm following this case notes that such practices reflect the ongoing struggle between child safety online and corporate advertising models.
It is illegal under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) to collect the data of those under the age of 13 without obtaining parental or guardian consent. Yet, this approach to data collection is becoming increasingly common.
For instance, in a lawsuit in 2024 against TikTok, the entertainment platform was accused of allowing millions of children under 13 to use the app and collecting extensive personal data without parental consent. TikTok’s use of features like ‘Kids Mode’ involved unauthorized data collection for targeted advertising.
The class in the proposed lawsuit involves American children below 13 years of age, who have watched YouTube content over a seven-year span, from July 1, 2013, to April 1, 2020. Estimates suggest that the members involved could be up to 45 million.
Google faced similar allegations in 2019, wherein its subsidiary, YouTube was accused of violating children’s privacy.
The proposed settlement was accepted after mediation rounds between the parties, which commenced in February. Despite the agreement to settle, Google has denied the allegations made against it.
YouTube’s History with Data Privacy
In 2019, the FTC and Attorney General of New York accused YouTube of collecting personal information through ‘persistent identifiers,’ used to track users, including children.
It was alleged that user tracking was enabled on internet sites targeting children without obtaining prior parental consent. Using these identifiers to deliver targeted ads, the platform was discovered to have earned substantial revenues.
Under the COPPA rule, the obligation to obtain such consent is imposed on both YouTube, for directly using such identifiers, and on third parties, including advertisers who have knowledge of the collection of personal information from websites targeting children. A technology law firm observing this development emphasized that the obligations under COPPA extend not just to platforms but to all ecosystem players engaged in monetizing children’s data.
FTC claimed that, while the platform may be considered a ‘general-audience site’, its specific channels targeting children are required to comply with COPPA.
Ultimately, the $170 million settlement that resulted (of which $34 million was paid to New York and $136 million to the FTC) was the largest FTC settlement in a COPPA case, at the time.
Google and YouTube were thereafter directed to create a system for channel operators to identify child-targeted content to ensure compliance and to obtain parental consent before processing such information.
Conclusion
The suit evidences the growing awareness and concerns about data privacy in the digital era. It goes on to claim that these actions were taken by Google in deliberate disregard of the law, to maximise its advertising revenues.
The suit alleges that Google was aware of YouTube’s numerous child-directed channels and continued to collect personal data to serve behaviourally targeted ads without verifiable parental consent.
In a recent development, the FTC has amended the COPPA Rule, effective June 23, 2025, with a compliance deadline of April 22, 2026, for most provisions.
Key changes include mandatory opt-in consent for targeted advertising and third-party disclosures, as well as data retention limits allowing storage only for as long as reasonably necessary.
Further, the Safe Harbor programs to enforce COPPA protections must now publicly disclose their member lists (online services directed at children under 13) and provide more information to the FTC, enhancing transparency and accountability.
FTC chair Lina M. Khan stated that, “by requiring parents to opt in to targeted advertising practices, this final rule prohibits platforms and service providers from sharing and monetizing children’s data without active permission.”
These amendments aim to better address evolving technologies and online practices, to strengthen protections for children’s personal information and improve clarity and enforcement.
Authors: Shantanu Mukherjee, Akshara Nair.
