OpenAI prohibits children under 13 from using its services and requires parental consent for users aged 13-17, but relies on users self-reporting their age rather than technical age verification.
Children under 13 are prohibited from using ChatGPT, and teens aged 13-17 require parental consent, but OpenAI appears to rely on self-reported age data rather than technical verification, meaning minors who misrepresent their age may have their conversation data collected without proper consent protections.
Cross-platform context
See how other platforms handle Children's Privacy and Age Restriction and similar clauses.
Compare across platforms →Without robust age verification mechanisms, minors may be exposed to AI-generated content and their personal data — including conversation content — may be collected without legally required parental consent, creating liability under COPPA.
(1) REGULATORY FRAMEWORK: This provision implicates COPPA (15 U.S.C. §6501 et seq.) and its implementing rule (16 CFR Part 312), which requires verifiable parental consent before collecting personal information from children under 13; CCPA/CPRA Cal. Civ. Code §1798.120 which provides enhanced protections for minors under 16; and California AB 2273 (Age-Appropriate Design Code) which requires privacy-by-default for services likely accessed by minors. The FTC is the primary COPPA enforcement authority with civil penalty authority up to $51,744 per violation per day. (2)
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