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Google to offer special accounts for kids: report

Under 13? You'll be under Google's tender care

Google is reportedly investigating how it can offer accounts to children.

The Information reports that The Chocolate Factory is considering a regime whereby parents can set up accounts for kids and control the Google services they are permitted to access.

Kids under 13 are currently not permitted to sign up for Google+. As your correspondent can attest they are, however, offered the chance to do so when logged in as a Google Apps user. Google Apps accounts of Kids under 13 who enter their actual birthday when prompted to do so during the Google+ signup process are suspended for 30 days.

There's no easy or swift way to un-suspend users who fall foul of Google+'s age requirements. So perhaps Google's reported intention to offer child accounts is intended to help out home Google Apps admins, rather than to gather more data about more people in order to sling more ads.

Whatever Google's intentions, The WSJ has been able to find folks willing to ask if anyone is thinking of the children. ®

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