New Petition and Whistleblower Statement Provide Evidence that Meta Knowingly Allowed Children to Use its VR Platform Horizon Worlds
Washington (April 10, 2025) - Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, and Representative Kathy Castor (FL-14), a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, wrote today to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Andrew Ferguson urging the FTC to open investigation into allegations – in a petition submitted by advocacy organization Fairplay – that Meta violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The petition contains significant evidence that Meta and its executives knew children were using Horizon Worlds, its virtual reality (VR) platform, and yet failed to obtain parental consent before collecting their personal information, as COPPA requires. Additionally, an accompanying sworn statement by a new Meta whistleblower further suggests Meta intentionally ignored child users on Horizon Worlds and disregarded its obligations under COPPA.
In the letter the lawmakers write, “The Fairplay petition raises serious and troubling allegations. According to the complaint, Meta has knowingly permitted large numbers of children under the age of 13 to access Horizon Worlds using standard adult accounts — accounts that do not require parental notice or consent and that permit extensive data collection.
The lawmakers continue, “As the authors of the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0), we take these allegations with the utmost seriousness. Congress originally passed COPPA to safeguard children’s privacy in the face of evolving technological threats. Although the original law needs an update to account for those new threats, Meta appears to have blatantly violated the COPPA requirements. The volume of personal information collected from children in VR — including body movements, facial expressions, voice recordings, eye tracking, and environmental data — renders these allegations especially concerning. Moreover, VR platforms do not merely present screen-based content, they envelop young users in highly interactive, sensory-rich worlds that can blur the boundary between virtual and physical experiences. For those reasons, the allegations in the Fairplay petition deserve urgent attention from the FTC.”
Senator Markey authored the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) in 1998 and continuously fights for young people on online platforms. He and Senator Cassidy reintroduced their update to COPPA, the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0), in March 2025. In September 2024, the House Energy and Commerce Committee passed COPPA 2.0, co-led by Representative Castor, by a voice vote. In July 2024, the U.S. Senate passed the Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act, which included COPPA 2.0, by a 91-3 vote.
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