Protecting Your Children's Data: A Parent's Guide to Digital Privacy

Key takeaways

• Start with the accounts, apps, school tools, and devices a child actually uses rather than applying an identical rule to every service.
• Review location sharing, audience settings, permissions, and public profile details together with age-appropriate explanations.
• Avoid posting children's full names, routines, school identifiers, or location clues where an unrestricted audience can see them.
• A parent's deletion request may depend on the service, the child's age, the information type, and applicable law.
• Teach children to pause before sharing, recognize unexpected requests, and ask a trusted adult when a message feels pressuring.

How Children's Data Is Collected: From Birth to Adolescence

The collection of children's personal data begins earlier than most parents realize. Birth records become public information. Pediatric healthcare systems store health data that is shared with insurance companies and healthcare data brokers. When you add your child to your health insurance, their information enters commercial databases. Schools collect extensive data including grades, attendance records, disciplinary actions, and increasingly, biometric data like fingerprints for lunch programs.

As children grow, the data collection accelerates. Mobile apps designed for children collect device identifiers, location data, and usage patterns. Smart toys with microphones and cameras record audio and video in your home. Educational technology platforms used in schools track learning progress, behavioral patterns, and engagement metrics. A 2025 study found that the average child has data in over 70 different commercial databases by age 10.

Social media represents another significant vector. Many children begin using social media platforms well before the stated minimum age of 13, exposing their personal information, photos, and social connections. Even for children not on social media, parental posting (sharenting) creates a digital footprint. Research shows that the average child has over 1,500 photos posted online by their parents before they turn five.

COPPA: What It Protects and Where It Falls Short

The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) was enacted in 1998 and updated in 2013 to address online collection of personal data from children under 13. It requires websites and online services directed at children to obtain verified parental consent before collecting personal data, post clear privacy policies, and allow parents to review and delete their children's information.

Despite its good intentions, COPPA has significant gaps. Enforcement by the FTC is limited by resources, and many companies treat compliance as a checkbox exercise rather than a genuine commitment to children's privacy. Age verification is easily circumvented, as children routinely lie about their age to access platforms. COPPA does not cover data collected offline, such as school records or in-store purchases, and it does not apply to data collected by general audience websites that are not specifically directed at children.

• COPPA applies to websites and online services directed at children under 13
• Requires verified parental consent before collecting children's personal data
• Companies must allow parents to review and delete collected data
• FTC enforcement: Fortnite maker Epic Games was fined $520 million in 2022 for COPPA violations
• Major gap: COPPA does not cover data collected by schools, healthcare providers, or offline sources

The Risks: Identity Theft and Long-Term Consequences

Children are prime targets for identity theft because they have clean credit histories and the theft often goes undetected for years. An estimated 1.25 million children in the US are victims of identity theft each year, according to Javelin Strategy & Research. Criminals use children's Social Security numbers to open credit accounts, file tax returns, and even obtain employment, and the fraud may not be discovered until the child applies for their first credit card, student loan, or job.

Beyond financial fraud, children's data exposure carries long-term consequences. Detailed behavioral profiles built during childhood can follow individuals into adulthood, potentially affecting college admissions, employment, and insurance decisions. Photos and posts shared during childhood become part of a permanent digital record that future employers, romantic partners, or adversaries can find. The right to be forgotten is particularly important for individuals who never consented to having their data collected in the first place.

Social Media Age Limits and Platform Practices

Most major social media platforms set a minimum age of 13 for account creation, aligning with COPPA requirements. However, enforcement of these age limits is minimal. A 2025 survey found that 45% of children aged 10-12 had active social media accounts, with parental knowledge in about 60% of cases. Platforms rely on self-reported age during signup, which is trivially easy to falsify.

Some platforms have taken steps to create safer environments for younger users. Instagram offers supervised accounts where parents can manage privacy settings and content filters. YouTube has the YouTube Kids app with curated content and limited data collection. TikTok offers a restricted mode and screen time management tools. However, privacy advocates argue that these measures are insufficient and that platforms should implement more robust age verification and data minimization for younger users.

Practical Steps Parents Can Take Today

Start by auditing the apps and services your children use. Check the privacy settings on each app, revoke unnecessary permissions (especially location, microphone, and camera), and remove apps that your children no longer use. Enable the parental controls built into iOS (Screen Time) and Android (Family Link) to limit app installations and data sharing.

Freeze your children's credit with all three major credit bureaus. Since children should not have credit activity, any activity on a frozen account is a clear sign of fraud. You can request a freeze for your child by contacting Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion directly with proof of your identity and your child's identity.

Be thoughtful about what you share about your children online. Consider the long-term implications of photos, location check-ins, school names, and activity schedules. Use privacy settings on your own social media to limit who can see posts about your children. And talk to your children about digital privacy in age-appropriate ways, teaching them to be cautious about sharing personal information online. At protectmydata, we offer family plans that extend data broker monitoring and removal to all members of your household, including children.

What information about a child should a family review?

Review the information that identifies a child directly and the details that reveal patterns: profile names, photos, school references, location tags, schedules, contact details, and connected accounts. A single detail may appear harmless, but repeated posts can reveal routines or link a child to family members.

Make the review age appropriate. Explain privacy choices and teach children to check an audience, question unexpected requests, and pause before sharing.

How should parents review apps and family devices?

Review each app's audience, location access, and contact, camera, and microphone permissions in current device settings.

Use unique passwords and available multi-factor authentication. Keep software updated and close unused accounts after considering saved records.

What should a parent do when information is already public?

First identify who controls the page: the family, a social platform, a school, a broker, or another publisher. Remove or restrict information at its source when possible, then check for copies and search results. A platform removal does not necessarily remove an independent broker profile or an image reposted elsewhere.

Privacy rights and age-related rules vary. Check the service's official request route and relevant jurisdiction guidance before sharing information.

How can families make sharing decisions safer?

Before posting, consider whether the detail would reveal a child's identity, location, routine, or private experience beyond the intended audience. Ask permission when appropriate, avoid tagging live locations, and use restricted audiences. If a child reports pressure, impersonation, or exploitation, preserve relevant details safely and use the platform's reporting channel and appropriate trusted support.

At a glance

A family digital-privacy check

1. List the child's active devices, accounts, school platforms, and social or gaming apps.
2. Review audiences, searchability, location settings, and contact permissions on each service.
3. Remove unnecessary public details and request correction or removal through the controlling service.
4. Set age-appropriate household rules for photos, location tags, passwords, and unfamiliar messages.
5. Revisit settings when the child changes devices, accounts, schools, or online activities.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• California Privacy Protection Agency: Frequently Asked Questions
• CISA: Recognize and Report Phishing

Related privacy guides

• how data removal requests work

  Review the process and limitations before making decisions about a child's broker listing.

• sites covered by removal

  Check whether a people-search service is within stated broker coverage.

• compare service options

  A parent can review scope and cost before deciding whether help with broker requests is appropriate.

• online privacy and security basics

  Use the broader guide to discuss privacy and security as related but distinct family practices.

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