Mattel Children's Privacy Statement

Updated Dec 20, 2019

This Children’s Privacy Statement provides additional details regarding the practices described in the CHILDREN’S PRIVACY section of our Privacy Statement. Key terms are italicized (like this) and can be found in the DEFINITIONS section of the Privacy Statement.

What Are Mattel’s Children’s Privacy Practices?

We take many special precautions to protect the privacy of children at Mattel Services directed to children. Some Mattel Sites or areas of Mattel Sites with content for children can be identified by “kids” or “play” in the domain or subdomain. Content intended for adults may be available at such Mattel Sites, accessible through a “parents” link. If you have a question about whether a particular Mattel Service is directed to children, please use the CHILD-DIRECTED WEBSITE REQUEST FORM.

We do not collect personal information from children through Mattel Services directed to children without the consent of a parent or legal guardian except in special, limited circumstances described below.
We do not ask for more personal information than is necessary for a child to participate in the activity.
We take steps to prevent children from posting or publicly disclosing personal information without parental consent, such as monitoring or screening and use of filtering technology.

What Information Does Mattel Collect from Children and How Is It Used?

To participate in special activities, like scavenger hunts, personalized pages, games or clubs, we might ask your child to register. They can often do so anonymously by just providing a first name or user name, and password. When we ask for your child’s first name, we encourage them to use a “screen name” (not their real name) that only they know. Sometimes we will ask your child to make up a special password so that only they can see their customized areas of Mattel Services. We use technology, like cookies, to recognize visitors by their user name when they use or revisit Mattel Services, and to provide us important information that helps us understand features and areas of most interest. We may also use these technologies to screen for age. We may also use technology for similar purposes in our apps.

We may sometimes need a child’s email address, your email address, or both. We may ask a child for your email address, so we can notify you of your child’s interest in Mattel Services. In the limited circumstances where we might collect your child’s email address without getting your consent first (see more below), if we need more than just your child’s first name (or screen name) and email address for your child to participate in a particular Mattel Service, we will ask your child for your email or mailing address so that we can notify you of your child’s request and get your permission. When we ask for your permission, we will tell you what we will do with the information you or your child provides us, and how you can review your child’s information and ask us to delete the information. With your consent, we may collect other personal information from your child such as a last name or home address when the information is necessary for a particular activity.

We don’t keep your (or your child’s) email address unless you tell us it is okay. If social networking opportunities are available through Mattel Services, they are structured so that no personal information is shared between visitors unless parental consent is obtained.

Mattel might collect an email address and first name (or screen name) from your child without your consent, but only in the following special cases:

If a child sends a request to us, we keep their email address for long enough to respond to them. Mattel deletes this information from our system after we answer their question. In the case of “send a friend” emails, we do not ask for your child’s email address and only use the friends’ email address to send the message, after which the friends’ email addresses are deleted.
If a child signs up for an email newsletter or other activity that requires multiple online contacts with the child, we also ask the child for a parent’s or legal guardian’s email address, so we can notify you and give you an opportunity to opt out.
Occasionally, Mattel has special activities or promotions, like sweepstakes or contests that are open to children. We ask your child to give us your email address, so that we can tell you that they have registered in a promotion or for a service. If we need more than an email address and first name (or screen name) to enter your child in the promotion, award a prize, or offer the service, we will notify you, explain what information we need and why, and generally ask that you (not your child) provide it. For instance, we might ask you for your mailing address so that we can send to you, for your child, any prizes your child wins, or for your phone number so that we can contact you if your child has won. Any information we receive from you or your child in the above special circumstances will be deleted from our database once the promotion, program or activity is concluded, and after any legally required period for keeping such information is complete.

We may offer enhanced Mattel Services, including subscription-based Mattel Services, which require a parent to register and establish the appropriate permission level for the child. Content and activities available may vary depending on the Service. Parents will be provided with information on the type of content and activities their child may access at the time they register and are always in charge of their child’s account. Subscription fees may apply for some Services.

We may ask for certain information that is not personally identifiable, like city and state, birth month and day, gender, hobbies, etc., to help us understand our visitors and improve our products and Mattel Services.

We also use technology and work with third-party technology partners to facilitate the ability to play games, to recognize returning visitors, for research, and for other purposes, including to screen under-age visitors from certain features or areas intended for older visitors, and to get certain automatically collected information automatically. We ask our advertising agency service partners under contract with us to comply with self-regulatory guidelines on targeted advertising. Read more about our cookies and technologies and our third-party technology partners at our COOKIES AND TECHNOLOGIES STATEMENT.

Can My Child Access the Web Through Mattel Services?

Your child can navigate to the general internet through most of Mattel Services. Websites, online services, or apps that can be accessed through a Mattel Service are governed by the third party’s privacy practices, and not this Privacy Statement. We recommend that you check the applicable privacy statement and terms of use each time you use any website, online service, or app so you understand how your and your children’s personal information will be collected and used, and by whom.

Apps must typically be downloaded from an app store. Your computer or mobile device may enable you to restrict your child’s ability to visit other areas on the internet and to make purchases online or through apps. We provide information on features available through our child-directed connected products to inform parents about how the product connects to the internet, whether the child can access non-Mattel content on the internet, and if so how to control a child’s ability to access other non-Mattel content or services online.

App stores generally require an adult mobile device owner to register to download or make purchases. Some apps may offer options to visit an online store to make a product purchase.

We encourage you to spend time with your children when they are online or using any mobile device or connected product so you understand the features of the Service and the activities they allow, and to adopt available device and browser controls that reflect your preferences about your children’s ability to access the internet or make purchases online.

Can I Access, Update, and Review Information You Have About My Child?

If you no longer want your child to participate in an email newsletter, simply click on the link that is provided for removal or contact us at service@mattel.com for Mattel, Fisher-Price, HIT Entertainment, and MEGA Brands, or service@americangirl.com for American Girl.

Upon proper identification, a parent or legal guardian may access and review the personal information we have collected about their child, update their child’s contact details, request deletion, or refuse to allow further collection or use of the information. Use the PARENTAL ACCESS FORM to access, update, or delete your children’s information. Please note, however, if you ask us to delete your child’s information, your child may not be able to participate in some of Mattel Services.

If your child has created an online account through one of our Mattel Sites, you may also have the opportunity to manage your child’s account online. For accounts created through Mattel Login, see https://mattel-inc-parents.kws.superawesome.tv for information regarding the Mattel Login Parent Portal. For child online accounts created using the Mega sign up, visit https://www.megabrands.com to login to your Mega Parent Account.

A special note for parents and legal guardians:

We take special steps to protect the privacy of information we obtain from children, as defined in this Privacy Statement. Please help us protect your children’s privacy by instructing them never to provide personal information without your permission.

A special note to children:

Children should get a parent’s or legal guardian’s permission before giving out personal contact information or any other personal information, to Mattel or to anyone else.

Children’s Privacy at Mattel Services and Sites

At Mattel Services directed to children, we do not collect personal information from children without the consent of a parent or legal guardian, except in limited circumstances authorized by law.
We collect some information (like IP address, mobile device UDID, operating system, etc.) automatically and use technology like cookies to provide functionality and support our operations.
We do not ask for more personal information than is necessary for a child to participate in an activity.
We take steps to prevent children from posting or publicly disclosing personal information.
Parents can access and ask us to update or delete their children’s information.
We may use monitoring and filtering technology to prevent children from posting personal information without parental consent at Mattel Services directed to children.