Catholic - Greek Orthodox Support Children's Online Privacy Act
December 29, 2012: The U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Department of
Communications and the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America issued on Friday a statement
in support of the Federal Trade Commission's revisions to the Children's Online Privacy
Protection Act (COPPA) that were announced on December 20.
"We applaud the
Federal Trade Commission and Chairman Jon Leibowitz for these important steps to keep
children safe in the ever-evolving digital world," said Helen Osman, Secretary of
Communications for the USCCB. "The Commission is to be especially commended for setting
guidelines for website operators regarding the release of children's personal information
to companies and for reasonable procedures for data retention and deletion."
COPPA
was passed by Congress in 1998 and is designed to enable parents to decide how and
whether Internet companies and operators can collect and use personal information
from children under the age of 13.
"These revisions are greatly needed by the
parents and families in our parishes who continue to express to us their concerns
about keeping their children safe online," said Father Mark Arey, Ecumenical Officer
of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America."In particular, they often speak about
their concern about collection of their children's personal information (such as photos,
videos and geolocation information) and so we are pleased that the new COPPA rules
address this."
The USCCB and the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America represent
over 77 million people in the United States and are committed to a safe Internet environment,
especially for children. In the spring of 2013 the USCCB Committee on Communications
and the Greek Orthodox Church of America will release an online Digital Safety Guide
for parents and faith communities.