Fortnite Privacy Lawsuit Aims to Cover Children Left Out of Epic Games-FTC Settlement

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A proposed class action lawsuit alleges Epic Games has illegally tracked the personal information of Fortnite players under 13 and exploited the data for commercial gain, including to develop merchandise, promote in-game items for sale, and for in-game product placements and targeted advertising. 

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The 40-page Fortnite privacy lawsuit alleges Epic Games has disregarded the reasonable expectation of privacy of millions of Fortnite players under 13 years old, the vast majority of its user base, in violation of federal and state laws meant to protect the privacy rights of children. Epic has used the information it routinely collects from minors—including a user’s screen name, geolocation information and biometric data—to generate billions in revenue, the filing says. 

The lawsuit also accuses Epic of “match[ing] children with strangers” and allowing them to chat during gameplay without parental notice or consent, facilitating “dangerous interactions” and exposing children to “bullying, threats, and harassment, including sexual harassment.” 

Central to the case is a December 2022 lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against Epic Games that alleged, among other things, that the developer had violated the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). An injunction into which Epic entered with the federal government prevented the company from collecting data from children under 13 without verifiable parental notice and consent and mandated privacy default settings, the deletion of previously collected information and more to bring the developer into compliance with COPPA, the filing shares. 

Separately, the FTC imposed upon Epic a $275 million civil penalty and ordered the company to pay a $245 million settlement to refund customers who bought unwanted items with in-game currency or bought items without parental permission, the proposed class action relays. 

The lawsuit points out, however, that the Fortnite FTC settlement did not compensate children for Epic Games’ unlawful collection and use of their personal information for targeted advertising and product placement purposes.  

Per the suit, COPPA applies to any operator of a commercial website or online service directed to children under 13 years old that collects, uses and/or discloses personal information from children. The law requires entities who run child-directed websites or online services to fulfill certain disclosure and consent requirements prior to collecting, using or disclosing a child’s personal information online, the case shares. 

The complaint adds that COPPA was amended in 2013 to afford parents greater control over the online collection of their children’s data and widened the definition of “personal information” to include tracking cookies, geolocation information, photos, videos and audio recordings. 

The Fortnite privacy lawsuit looks to cover all persons residing in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington or West Virginia who are younger than 13, or were younger than 13 when they made an Epic Games account, and played any version of Fortnite, and from whom Epic collected, used or disclosed personal information without first obtaining verified parental consent. 

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