Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA)
A 1988 federal law that bars video providers from sharing what you watch without your written consent, with a $2,500 minimum award for violations.
Also called: VPPA, Video Privacy Protection Act of 1988, video privacy law
A 1988 federal law that bars video providers from sharing what you watch without your written consent, with a $2,500 minimum award for violations.
What it means
The Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) is a federal law, passed in 1988. It bars a "video tape service provider" from knowingly sharing personally identifiable information about a consumer. That means a business that rents, sells or delivers prerecorded video materials. A "consumer" is a renter, buyer or subscriber. Protected information includes anything that identifies you as having requested or obtained specific videos.
A provider may share your information in limited cases. Examples are with your informed, written consent, under a court order or warrant, or to you. Since a 2013 amendment, consent can be given electronically over the internet. It must be separate from other legal terms.
You can sue under the VPPA. A court may award actual damages, but not less than $2,500, plus punitive damages and attorneys' fees. A case must start within two years of the violation or its discovery. Class actions have used the VPPA against websites and apps that stream video. They claim the sites passed viewing data to advertising or analytics companies.
What it means for you
VPPA claims turn on two questions. Did a video site or app share your viewing history with another company? Did you agree in a separate, written way? Class definitions vary. Some cover account holders who watched a video during set dates. The $2,500 figure is a statutory minimum award, not what settlements pay. Members usually receive a small share of a fund or a non-cash benefit after fees and costs. Read the class period and the definition of who counts before you file.
Example
Say a hypothetical streaming site lets you create a free account and watch clips. Unknown to you, its code sends your account email and the title of each video you watch to an advertising company. If the site never got your separate, written consent, a class action could argue it violated the VPPA. The case would seek the statute's $2,500 minimum for each member, but a settlement would split a fund and pay far less per person.
FAQ
The law says a case must be started within two years of the violation or of when it was discovered. A settlement notice has its own claim deadline, which you must meet separately.
Lawsuits have applied it to websites and apps that stream video, and the law's wording covers businesses that deliver prerecorded video materials. Whether it applies to a given service depends on the facts and on how courts read the law.
Related terms
Updated Oct 18, 2026. Plain-English definitions for general information — not legal or tax advice.