A father-of-three has filed a complaint against YouTube for allegedly gathering data on children’s viewing habits in breach of the Information Commissioner’s Office age-appropriate design code. The complaint against the popular online video platform is made by data rights campaigner Duncan McCann as a private citizen.
His action is backed by his employer, the charity 5Rights, which said it is the first complaint against a major tech firm for allegedly breaching the “Children’s Code” or “age-appropriate design code”, which was introduced in September 2021. The code sets out standards to which online services must adhere in order to comply with UK data protection law when it comes to children and protecting their personal information online.
The Information Commissioner’s Office said it will “consider this complaint carefully”, and Mr McCann said it has three months to inform him whether it will take the investigation on. Mr McCann’s complaint alleges that, at a minimum, the location, viewing habits, and preferences of up to five million UK children are systematically recorded by the internet giant, breaking data protection laws and breaching industry standards designed to protect young people under the age of 13.
