Verizon Teams With PRIVO to Enable Identity Pilot to Protect Online Activities of Millions of Children

NEW YORK and MCLEAN, Va., Jan. 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Privacy Vaults Online Inc., known as PRIVO, has assembled a team of leading technology and identity companies and government agencies, including Verizon Enterprise Solutions, to enable a pilot program aimed at safeguarding the online activities and personal information of children. The program will be funded by a two-year federal grant valued up to $3.2 million. 

Under the pilot, PRIVO will establish the Minors Trust Framework, a collection of policies and online tools that provides parents more control over the online activities of their children and helps businesses address the requirements of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998, or COPPA. Verizon's cloud and identity management technologies will help enable the framework, which will support the use of privacy-enhancing login credentials by families, teachers and businesses.

The online identity credentials – delivered through Verizon's Universal Identity Services – will indicate parental consent, helping to reduce the capture of sensitive information about a child, and enabling easier, more secure online access to digital content from computers, gaming consoles and mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. In addition, PRIVO will help parents authorize and monitor their child's use of specific content and applications through an easy-to-use portal, while reducing the number of user-name and password combinations a family must manage.

PRIVO expects 1 million credentials to be issued under the Minors Trust Framework by the end of 2014, with a total of 10 million by the pilot's end in 2015. 

"Businesses, government agencies and nonprofit organizations that offer online services to children have been hindered in their efforts to comply with COPPA by the lack of a unified approach to notify parents and obtain their consent," said Denise Tayloe, president and chief executive officer of PRIVO. "Working with Verizon and a growing team of organizations, PRIVO is committed to maintaining the online safety of children by creating a platform that provides children globally with access to online educational and entertainment content in a safer, more private and parent-empowering manner."

Tracy Hulver, chief identity strategist for Verizon Enterprise Solutions, said: "Through close collaboration with PRIVO, a system is being built that will be easy for parents to use while meeting the requirements of business. By leveraging our cloud and next-generation identity platforms, PRIVO will have a highly scalable and secure way to help parents and businesses safeguard the online activities of children." 

The federally funded grant awarded to PRIVO is provided by the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace, or NSTIC, a public- and private-sector initiative launched by the White House in 2011 to create an Internet-identity ecosystem that improves the privacy, security and convenience of sensitive online transactions and activities. It is part of the U.S. Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology.

PRIVO, established in 2001, helps enable companies, government agencies and nonprofit organizations that market family-oriented products and services to children online to meet the Federal Trade Commission's COPPA requirements. COPPA provides guidance regarding the online collection of personal information of children under the age of 13, and details what online services – including websites and mobile applications – must do to obtain parental consent in order to protect the privacy and safety of children.

For more information on PRIVO's privacy initiative for families, visit Online Privacy Matters, an educational awareness campaign page containing details on the Minors Trust Framework, as well as a simple registration process for parents, teachers and businesses.

Verizon Enterprise Solutions creates global connections that generate growth, drive business innovation and move society forward. With industry-specific solutions and a full range of global wholesale products and services offered over the company's secure mobility, cloud, strategic networking and advanced communications platforms, Verizon Enterprise Solutions helps open new opportunities around the world for innovation, investment and business transformation. Visit verizonenterprise.com to learn more.

About PRIVO
Privacy Vaults Online, Inc. (PRIVO) is a McLean, Virginia based company which works with online services, government agencies and organizations to deliver COPPA compliance and enable them with the knowledge, resources and tools necessary to initiate and manage responsible and effective youth and parent online relationships. PRIVO, a Federal Trade Commission COPPA safe-harbor, is a woman owned small business. PRIVO provides a range of consent management services to online companies so they can focus on the education, games and services they deliver to children while meeting the requirements of COPPA. For more information, visit www.privo.com.

About Verizon
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, with nearly 103 million retail connections nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers integrated business solutions to customers in more than 150 countries. A Dow 30 company with more than $120 billion in 2013 revenues, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of 176,800.  For more information, visit www.verizon.com.               

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SOURCE Verizon