A two-year federal grant will back a pilot...

A two-year federal grant will back a pilot program to safeguard children’s online activities and personal information, said a Verizon release Wednesday (http://on.mktw.net/1eg7aId). Privacy Vaults Online (PRIVO) -- which helps companies comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) -- put together the group of technology and identity companies and government agencies to work on the program, said Verizon. Verizon Enterprise Solutions will be among the participating companies. The government grant lasts for two years, is worth as much as $3.2 million and is funded through the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace (NSTIC), a White House-launched, public-private sector initiative, said Verizon. NSTIC is housed within the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The pilot program is expected to create 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” COPPA requirements, Verizon said. The group will issue “privacy-enhancing login credentials” to “indicate parental consent, helping to reduce the capture of sensitive information about a child, and enabling easier, more secure online access,” Verizon said. PRIVO expects 1 million of these credentials will be issued by the end of 2014, with 10 million issued by the end of the pilot program in 2015, Verizon said. “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 PRIVO CEO Denise Tayloe in a statement.