Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, has agreed to pay $520 million (approximately Rs. 4,305 crore) to settle allegations of illegally collecting children’s personal information and engaging in deceptive practices to encourage purchases, as announced by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the company on Monday.
The settlement includes a record penalty of $275 million (approximately Rs. 2,300 crore) for violating children’s privacy laws and the implementation of robust default privacy settings for young users. Additionally, Epic Games will refund consumers who were deceived by “dark patterns” into making unintended purchases, amounting to $245 million (approximately Rs. 2,000 crore), according to the FTC.
FTC Chair Lina Khan stated, “Epic used invasive default settings and misleading interfaces to deceive Fortnite users, including teenagers and children.”
This development comes as the agency has taken on a more assertive role in regulating the gaming industry, with a recent complaint filed against Microsoft for its $69 billion (approximately Rs. 6 lakh crore) attempt to acquire Activision.
In response, Epic Games claimed that it had removed pay-to-win and pay-to-progress mechanics for player-vs-player matches and eliminated random item loot boxes back in 2019. The company also announced the implementation of an explicit yes/no choice for saving payment information.
Refunds for players can now be requested through credit cards. The company stated, “If a cardholder notices an unauthorized transaction on their statement, they can report it to their bank for reversal.”
Epic Games also highlighted its efforts to protect children, including the introduction of more accessible parental controls, the requirement of a PIN for parental authorization of purchases, and a daily spending limit for children under the age of 13.
The FTC revealed that Epic employees had expressed concerns about the default settings in place for children, suggesting that voice chat should require an opt-in. As a result, the FTC mandated that voice and text chat be disabled by default.
Child privacy advocates welcomed the settlement, with Jeff Chester of the Center for Digital Democracy expressing satisfaction that “kids’ data privacy rights are being better protected through the enforcement of the federal kids’ data privacy law (COPPA).”
© Thomson Reuters 2022
Denial of responsibility! TechCodex is an automatic aggregator of the all world’s media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.
Eugen Boglaru is an AI aficionado covering the fascinating and rapidly advancing field of Artificial Intelligence. From machine learning breakthroughs to ethical considerations, Eugen provides readers with a deep dive into the world of AI, demystifying complex concepts and exploring the transformative impact of intelligent technologies.
