Capital Hill Has Their Eyes On Facebook Over Privacy For Kids

Facebook representatives are to appear before a congressional committee in Washington DC today over the issue of online privacy for kids.  This is a week after Google representatives were in the congressional hot seat for the exact same reasons.

Both companies are testifying before the congressional privacy caucus headed by Representative Ed Markey (D Mass).  Markey told CBS News “We shouldn’t be debating this,”  he went on to say “It’s just about making sure kids get to grow up in an electronic oasis that does not come back to haunt them and their families,”

On the other side of the debate, former Clinton White House adviser Peter Swire tells CBS 

More after the break

“There’s a lot of tracking of where you surf on the Internet,” he said, and continued  “Lots of different advertising networks and other people are keeping track of that. There’s nothing illegal about it, and that troubles many lawmakers.”

Markey believes that this is a non-issue and that Google and Facebook shouldn’t track nor market to children, period.  Anyone can use Google’s services however Facebook’s terms of service state that you need to be older than 13 to use the service. Facebook believes that at 13 the child is old enough to receive marketing and advertising and be considered in aggregating information to deliver these things.

Swire and others suggest that the tech giants and congressional committee come up with a suitable set of guidelines that will sit well with parents but not hinder the growth of technology that both Google and Facebook are working on to serve up more relevant advertising.  Although no one likes to talk about it, advertising is what keeps these companies alive and making payroll.