Federal regulators fine Amazon $25 million over child privacy issues

The U.S. government alleges that Amazon violated the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, a 1998 law that has recently been enforced against other popular tech companies including Fortnite-maker Epic Games and YouTube. More than 800,000 children under the age of 13 have their own Alexa profiles, according to the lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission. About five years ago, the company began offering a number of products specifically aimed at children, including the "Echo Dot Kids Edition" smart speaker and parental controls called "FreeTime on Alexa."