House Bill Would Allow Suits Over Kids’ Privacy Violations (1)

A House Democrat is attempting to overhaul decades-old online protections for children by giving parents the right to sue companies and expanding privacy coverage to teenagers, but the proposal may struggle to gain traction across the aisle.

Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) is introducing a bill (H.R. 5703) Thursday that would dramatically change the enforcement of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) that was signed into law in 1998. If it becomes law, it would affect large technology companies that host content directed toward children, including Google’s YouTube, which has faced fines for kids’ privacy violations.

“I think ...