Coursera is not designed for children under 13 and will delete data if it discovers it has collected information from a child under 13 without parental consent.
Children under 13 are prohibited from using Coursera, but the policy does not specify age verification mechanisms, and EU users aged 13-15 may require parental consent under GDPR Art. 8 depending on their member state — a gap not clearly addressed.
Cross-platform context
See how other platforms handle Minors and Age Restriction and similar clauses.
Compare across platforms →The 13-year minimum age threshold triggers COPPA compliance obligations in the US, and the policy does not address the higher age thresholds required in EU member states (up to 16) under GDPR Art. 8.
(1) REGULATORY FRAMEWORK: This provision directly implicates COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, 15 U.S.C. § 6501 et seq.) enforced by the FTC, which requires verifiable parental consent before collecting personal data from children under 13. GDPR Art. 8 sets minimum age at 16 (or lower as set by member states, minimum 13) for information society services — this policy's 13-year threshold may not comply with member states setting a higher age (e.g., Germany at 16, UK at 13 post-Brexit). Enforcement: FTC (COPPA), EU DPAs (GDPR Art. 8), UK ICO. (2)
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