Pixalate, the global market-leading fraud protection, privacy, and compliance analytics platform for Connected TV (CTV) and Mobile Advertising, today released the December 2022 Children’s Privacy Index for Mobile Advertising.
The monthly index benchmarks Supply-Side Platforms (SSPs) based on the percentage of ads they sell that are on apps that are likely child-directed, as assessed by Pixalate’s COPPA Methodology.
Key Takeaways
- December saw two sellers reported with a Critical risk level. The last time any seller had a Critical risk level was October.
- Six sellers received a High risk level for December, down 33% from November.
- 12 sellers were at Medium risk, a 20% decrease from the previous month.
- 22 sellers were found to be at Low risk, up from 19 in November.
According to Pixalate’s Q3 2022 COPPA Risk Scorecard Report: Google Vs. Apple there are ~420K likely child-directed mobile apps across the Google & Apple mobile app stores, which is approximately 8% of all apps across both stores. These apps can pose a COPPA compliance risk to advertising buyers and sellers, and awareness of which apps are child-directed is an important step in mitigating compliance risks.
Visit Pixalate’s Knowledge Base for more information about the Children’s Privacy Index for Mobile Advertising.
What is COPPA – and why it matters for advertisers
For nearly 25 years, the privacy of children online in the U.S. has been governed by COPPA and its implementing Rule, which has come under scrutiny as regulators aim to address its application in today’s complex advertising ecosystem.
COPPA bars the collection of data from children under 13 without verified parental consent. Advertisers, ad buyers, and sellers are at risk of collecting childrens’ personal data from apps not clearly labeled as child-directed in the app stores. As the gatekeepers of the mobile app stores, Google & Apple are well positioned to provide clarity yet they do not require developers of apps targeting children to identify as such nor do they prominently feature that information in the app stores. Doing so would not only help parents protect their children online, but would also enable ad tech companies in complying with COPPA.
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