Standards Comparison

    COPPA

    Mandatory
    1998

    U.S. federal law protecting children's online privacy under 13

    VS

    ISO 50001

    Voluntary
    2018

    International standard for energy management systems

    Quick Verdict

    COPPA mandates parental consent for children's online data, protecting kids under 13 from commercial trackers with FTC fines up to $170M. ISO 50001 is voluntary certification for energy performance improvement via PDCA, adopted for cost savings and ESG across industries.

    Children Privacy

    COPPA

    Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)

    Cost
    €€€€
    Complexity
    High
    Implementation Time
    6-12 months
    Energy Management

    ISO 50001

    ISO 50001:2018 Energy management systems

    Cost
    €€€€
    Complexity
    High
    Implementation Time
    12-18 months

    Key Features

    • Demonstrable continual energy performance improvement
    • Energy review identifies Significant Energy Uses (SEUs)
    • EnPIs and EnBs with normalization for variables
    • Annex SL enables integration with ISO 9001/14001
    • Operational controls for procurement and design

    Detailed Analysis

    A comprehensive look at the specific requirements, scope, and impact of each standard.

    COPPA Details

    What It Is

    Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) is a U.S. federal regulation enacted in 1998, effective April 2000, codified at 16 CFR Part 312. It safeguards children under 13 from unauthorized online personal data collection by commercial operators of websites, apps, and services directed to kids or with actual knowledge of child users. Core approach mandates verifiable parental consent (VPC) prior to collection, use, or disclosure, with 2013 amendments expanding scope to persistent identifiers, geolocation, and multimedia.

    Key Components

    • Verifiable parental consent via 11+ methods (e.g., credit card, video call).
    • Comprehensive privacy policies and notices.
    • Parental rights for data access, review, deletion, revocation.
    • Data security, minimization, and retention limits.
    • Safe harbor self-regulatory programs (e.g., ESRB, iKeepSafe). Built on parental empowerment principles; enforced as unfair practices under FTC Act.

    Why Organizations Use It

    Mandatory compliance avoids crippling FTC fines ($43,792/violation; e.g., YouTube's $170M). Mitigates risks from edtech, gaming, IoT; builds parent/stakeholder trust; enhances reputation amid rising child online activity. Global applicability deters extraterritorial violations.

    Implementation Overview

    Assess child-directed status, deploy age gates/VPC, post policies, secure data, audit third-parties. Applies to all operator sizes targeting U.S. kids; no formal certification but FTC exams/safe harbors. Key steps: audience analysis, tech integration, training; 6-12 months typical for mid-size firms.

    ISO 50001 Details

    What It Is

    ISO 50001:2018 is an international standard for establishing, implementing, maintaining, and improving an Energy Management System (EnMS). It provides organizations a systematic framework to enhance energy performance—efficiency, use, and consumption—using the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle and Annex SL structure.

    Key Components

    • Clauses 4–10 cover context, leadership, planning (energy review, SEUs, EnPIs, EnBs), support, operation, evaluation, improvement.
    • Mandates documented energy policy, data collection plans, monitoring, audits.
    • Built on continual improvement; optional certification via ISO 50003.

    Why Organizations Use It

    • Cuts energy costs (4–20% savings), reduces GHG emissions.
    • Meets regulatory demands (e.g., EU EED), boosts resilience.
    • Enhances ESG credibility, procurement advantages, investor trust.

    Implementation Overview

    • Phased: gap analysis, energy review, action plans, metering, audits.
    • Scalable for all sizes/sectors; integrates with ISO 9001/14001.
    • Certification optional: Stage 1/2 audits by accredited bodies. (178 words)

    Key Differences

    Scope

    COPPA
    Children's online privacy protection under 13
    ISO 50001
    Energy management systems performance improvement

    Industry

    COPPA
    Online services, apps, adtech, edtech global
    ISO 50001
    All sectors worldwide, energy-intensive manufacturing

    Nature

    COPPA
    Mandatory US federal law, FTC enforced
    ISO 50001
    Voluntary international certification standard

    Testing

    COPPA
    FTC audits, compliance reviews, no certification
    ISO 50001
    Third-party audits, internal audits, certification optional

    Penalties

    COPPA
    $43k per violation, $170M fines
    ISO 50001
    No legal penalties, loss of certification

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Common questions about COPPA and ISO 50001

    COPPA FAQ

    ISO 50001 FAQ

    You Might also be Interested in These Articles...

    Run Maturity Assessments with GRADUM

    Transform your compliance journey with our AI-powered assessment platform

    Assess your organization's maturity across multiple standards and regulations including ISO 27001, DORA, NIS2, NIST, GDPR, and hundreds more. Get actionable insights and track your progress with collaborative, AI-powered evaluations.

    100+ Standards & Regulations
    AI-Powered Insights
    Collaborative Assessments
    Actionable Recommendations

    Check out these other Gradum.io Standards Comparison Pages