Although in general all technology companies, including Epic Games, boast of a great interest in the privacy of their customers and users, the truth and the unfortunate thing is that we have already become accustomed to hearing about cases where the mentioned commitment, purely theoretical, He face to face completely a different reality in which their data has been compromised, either due to security failures or policies that consider uses of said data outside of what is legally and/or ethically acceptable.

Fortunately, third parties (especially regulators) remain alert to any possible action in this regard, either through their own oversight tools or through complaints against them, and in these cases, after perceptive investigations, companies are sanctioned based on irregularities that occurred either by collusion parties, or, failing that, after a subsequent legal process.

The last example in this regard, which is also somewhat worrying, is that of Epic Games, the company responsible for some very successful products such as Fortnite or Unreal Engine, and also responsible for the game store it has. achieved huge popularity by giving away games every week or, as is the case today (similar to previous Christmases), a new game every day.

The fact is that, as we can read in the statement of the American FTC (Federal Trade Commission), Epic Games has agreed to pay $520 million for violating minors’ privacy lawsjust like that causing the user to charge them unwanted fees. Of this sanction, 275 million correspond to the first of the causes, the remaining 245 to the second.

The problem lies with a recent change to the account system for younger players, a change that changed the default settings for some settings, causing minors’ data to be exposed without prior notification, let alone the consent of those responsible for the accounts, whether they were minors themselves or their parents or legal guardians.

In the FTC’s press release, we can read the following:

«As our complaints highlight, Epic used privacy-intrusive default settings and deceptive interfaces that misled Fortnite users, including teens and children.says FTC Chairwoman Lina M. Khan. «Protecting the public, and especially children, from online invasions of privacy and shady patrons is one of the Commission’s top priorities, and these enforcement actions make it clear to companies that the FTC is cracking down on these illegal practices..”

The Department of Justice takes seriously its mission to protect consumers’ privacy rights.said Deputy Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “This proposed order sends a message to all online providers that collecting personal information from children without parental consent will not be tolerated.“