Google resolved a lawsuit alleging that it illegally collected children’s YouTube data and used it for targeted advertising for $30 million without parental approval.
According to a San Jose federal court case, YouTube violated privacy rules for under-13s who accessed YouTube between July 2013 and April 2020.
A 2019 settlement in which Google paid $170 million for the same issue was criticised as too lenient.
YouTube and children’s privacy: what happened?
According to the lawsuit, YouTube content providers included cartoons and nursery songs to attract youngsters.
Google allegedly followed these underage visitors by gathering their data using persistent identifiers without parental consent.
Using the data to target adverts to children violates many state laws protecting children’s privacy online.
The case targeted Google and YouTube, but Hasbro and Cartoon Network were dismissed due to inadequate evidence linking them to data collection. Claims might net 35 to 45 million youngsters $30 to $60 each, but legal fees will lower these payments.
Legal background and Google’s response
Google settled this issue to avoid lengthy litigation and to deny misconduct. In 2019, after the FTC and New York Attorney General accused YouTube of improperly harvesting children’s data, Google paid $170 million in fines and changed some business practices. That agreement allowed YouTube content creators to recognise child-directed videos and improve COPPA compliance.
The current $30 million settlement is awaiting sanction from a federal magistrate. The approval will compensate customers who have been harmed and indicate that there will be additional oversight of how technology corporations manage juvenile data on digital platforms.
Alphabet’s $62.7 billion net revenue in the first half of 2025 demonstrates its ability to withstand such legal expenses.
To protect vulnerable users, internet companies must balance innovative content distribution with legal and ethical obligations. Google has repeatedly settled, so authorities and campaigners demand better online child protection.