TARGET: Hotmail policy re:under 13 yrs?

[Heidi <rawsonkehl@CBPU.COM>]

I work at the public library a few hours a week in addition to my prison
library job.  Tonight when I came on the reference desk, the person
before me shared with me a problem that a patron earlier in the day
encountered when trying to sign up her 13 year old son for a Hotmail
account.  I tested this myself, using my dog's birthday...my kids are
too old!!:-o

I got a message that asked if a parent was with me and when I put yes I
got a screen that asked the parent to sign in and verify they are an
adult by giving a valid credit card number!!  Of course it said "there
is no charge for this service"!!  When I said No it gave me a screen and
asked for my "parent's" e-mail address and then I was sent an e-mail
asking me to go to the link that again asked for me to sign in and give
a credit card number!

It says, "A new United States federal law requires Hotmail to receive
parental consent before it can collect personally identifiable
information from your child.  As a result, your child needs your consent
to register for an account at this site or to access an account that was
created prior to April 21, 2000.  To provide your consent, follow these
steps:..."

OK, my questions to the group are: Has anyone encounted this as a
problem with their students(elementary and middle school aged I
suspect!)?  What is the significance of the April 21, 2000 date?  How
can this really work when the parent involved today already solved the
problem by just saying her child was older than he really is? and Are
any of the other "free" e-mail services doing this?

Thanks for the input.  I told my coworker here at the public library
that I would ask some friends that worked with "lots of kids"!!

Heidi Rawson-Ketchum, Librarian
Unnamed-Prison/Branch District-Public
both in Coldwater, MI
rawsonkehl@cbpu.com

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