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Privacy group logs FTC complaint over Echometrix | News | Research

Submitted by Logicalextremes from Google Reader

Nov 03, 2009

Summary

US— A privacy group is calling on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate Echometrix, the maker of marketing intelligence software that analyses teens’ online conversations, alleging unfair and deceptive behaviour and violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) has filed a complaint with the FTC in which it claims “parents are unaware that the company collects information about their children and discloses it to third parties”.

Echometrix began life as SearchHelp, marketing its Sentry Parental Control software as a tool to allow mums and dads to monitor their children’s use of the internet, including instant messaging programmes. Among its features was sentiment analysis technology that was designed to protect children from suspected paedophiles by analysing language in online conversations.

In 2008, it announced plans to commercialise that technology for use by marketers to understand what young people were saying about their brands and products online. SearchHelp went on to rena

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