Watchdog finds MrBeast improperly collected children’s data

An industry watchdog group found that the popular YouTuber MrBeast collected children’s data without obtaining consent from parents, prompting the influencer to overhaul his channel’s data collection and advertising practices.

The Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU), a division of BBB National Programs, said Thursday that MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, violated its privacy guidelines and potentially ran afoul of the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA). 

COPPA requires that websites obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting, using or sharing personal data from children under 13.

The missteps occurred when Donaldson, whose YouTube channel has 436 million subscribers, told viewers to enter two sweepstakes competitions without providing any way for them to list their parents’ or guardians’ information so that consent could be obtained, the watchdog said. 

Donaldson promised his audience, which includes children under the age of 13, that winners would receive $10,000 based on how frequently they entered QR codes proving they had bought chocolate bars sold by his Feastables affiliate, according to CARU.

Participants were required to supply their full names, phone numbers, addresses and email addresses to take part in the competition. 

The Feastables website also improperly featured a full-page pop-up that repeatedly told viewers to provide their email address, telling them that “MrBeast Wants You to Join the Crew,” CARU said.

After testing the site by entering an email address, watchdog staff found that a second pop-up appeared, telling users to enter their phone number. The email and phone contact information provided was then sent to third parties, according to CARU.

Donaldson has worked with watchdog to update his channel’s data collection practices and has fixed the issue, CARU said.

Feastables issued a statement saying that it “appreciates CARU’s mission to promote responsible children's advertising.”

The statement noted that it did not agree with “all the conclusions made in the decision or the premises on which they were based.”

“Notwithstanding, MrBeast and Feastables certainly will take CARU's concerns under advisement as it develops future advertisements which appear in children's media,” they said.