Target says its website and apps are not meant for children under 13 and that it does not intentionally collect data from them, but it relies on a reactive rather than proactive age-verification approach.
Parents should be aware that Target does not use proactive age-verification mechanisms, meaning a child under 13 who uses Target's digital properties may have their data collected before Target becomes aware of it — parents can request deletion of any such data by contacting Target's privacy team.
Cross-platform context
See how other platforms handle Children's Privacy (COPPA Compliance) and similar clauses.
Compare across platforms →The absence of affirmative age-gating means children under 13 may interact with Target's data collection systems before any protective action is taken, creating COPPA compliance exposure for Target and privacy risk for families.
REGULATORY FRAMEWORK: This provision directly implicates COPPA (15 U.S.C. §6501 et seq.) and the FTC's COPPA Rule (16 C.F.R. Part 312), enforced by the FTC with civil penalties up to $51,744 per violation per day. The FTC Act Section 5 also applies to any deceptive practices related to children's data.
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