A San Francisco mother named Amanda Rushing is suing The Walt Disney Company and Disney Electronic Content over claims that its mobile apps do not comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). COPPA says that mobile development firms and third-parties cannot collect personal information about children under the age of 13. The lawsuit claims that the Disney Princess Palace Pets app and several other apps include an advertising SDK that uses persistent identifiers to track children’s behavior within the apps. Rushing says this practice violates the law.
A Disney spokesperson said, “The complaint is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of COPPA principles, and we look forward to defending this action in court.”