Spotify · Spotify Privacy Policy

Children's Data and Age Restrictions

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What it is

Spotify turns off targeted advertising for younger users by default, but automatically turns it on when they reach a certain age with only an in-app notification.

Consumer impact (what this means for users)

When a younger Spotify user reaches the age threshold for targeted advertising, Spotify automatically enables it and sends only an in-app notification — there is no active opt-in consent step, meaning the user must proactively opt out to avoid being profiled for advertising.

What you can do

⚠️ These actions may provide transparency or partial mitigation but may not fully address the underlying issue. Effectiveness varies by jurisdiction and individual circumstances.
  • Opt Out of Arbitration
    If you or a family member receives an in-app notification that targeted advertising has been enabled, immediately go to spotify.com/account/privacy and toggle off 'Tailored Ads' under the Tailored Advertising section.

How other platforms handle this

WhatsApp Medium

Businesses you interact with using our Services may provide us with information about their interactions with you. We require each of these businesses to act in accordance with applicable law when providing any information to us. When you message with a business on WhatsApp, keep in mind that the co...

Google Medium

We will share personal information outside of Google if we have a good-faith belief that access, use, preservation, or disclosure of the information is reasonably necessary to: meet any applicable law, regulation, legal process, or enforceable governmental request.

Character.AI Medium

You acknowledge and agree that we may preserve content and metadata in compliance with applicable law and our Privacy Policy. You acknowledge and agree that we may disclose content and/or metadata if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such preservation or disclosure is reasona...

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Why it matters (compliance & risk perspective)

Automatically switching younger users to targeted advertising when they age into eligibility — with only an in-app notification — may not provide adequate notice or meaningful consent, particularly for users who are still minors in some legal frameworks.

View original clause language
Younger users may have tailored advertising turned off by default. When you reach the appropriate age, you will start to receive tailored advertising. When this happens, you will receive a message within the Spotify Service to let you know. This message will contain a link to the Account Privacy page where you can change your preferences or 'opt-out' of tailored advertising at any time under Tailored Ads.

Institutional analysis (Compliance & legal intelligence)

1) REGULATORY FRAMEWORK: This provision implicates COPPA (15 U.S.C. §6501; 16 C.F.R. Part 312) for users under 13, which requires verifiable parental consent before collecting personal information for advertising; CPRA §1798.121 and the California Age-Appropriate Design Code (AB 2273) which require privacy by default for users under 18 and restrict profiling of minors for advertising; FTC Act Section 5; Virginia VCDPA §59.1-578(B)(5) and similar state law provisions restricting processing of known minors' data for targeted advertising. The FTC and CPPA are primary enforcement authorities. FTC COPPA penalties reach $51,744 per violation per day. 2)

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Applicable agencies

  • FTC
    The FTC enforces COPPA (16 C.F.R. Part 312) and has brought major enforcement actions against platforms for advertising practices involving minors, with penalties up to $51,744 per violation per day.
    File a complaint →
  • State AG
    California AG and CPPA have enforcement authority under CPRA §1798.120(c) (opt-in requirement for 13-15 year olds) and the California Age-Appropriate Design Code (AB 2273).
    File a complaint →

Applicable regulations

BIPA
Illinois, USA
CCPA/CPRA
California, USA
COPPA
United States Federal
CAN-SPAM
United States Federal
DMA
European Union
FCRA
United States Federal
GDPR
European Union
GLBA
United States Federal
HIPAA
United States Federal
UK GDPR
United Kingdom

Provision details

Document information
Document
Spotify Privacy Policy
Entity
Spotify
Document last updated
April 16, 2026
Tracking information
First tracked
March 6, 2026
Last verified
April 9, 2026
Record ID
CA-P-002614
Document ID
CA-D-00036
Evidence Provenance
Source URL
Wayback Machine
SHA-256
20e7378325f90f73de8e5f0d9b2d1ec4523f9cf07b406b492edd5753b96f24ad
Verified
✓ Snapshot stored   ✓ Change verified
How to Cite
ConductAtlas Policy Archive
Entity: Spotify | Document: Spotify Privacy Policy | Record: CA-P-002614
Captured: 2026-03-06 20:27:52 UTC | SHA-256: 20e7378325f90f73…
URL: https://conductatlas.com/platform/spotify/spotify-privacy-policy/childrens-data-and-age-restrictions/
Accessed: April 29, 2026
Classification
Severity
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