How Baby Of The Year Handles Privacy, Voting, And Kids’ Safety

Entering Baby of the Year begins with something most parents already have in abundance: a favorite photo of their baby. From there, a parent or legal guardian creates a profile, shares the page with family and friends once voting opens, and follows the child through a series of public voting rounds. The 2026 competition, which supports nonprofit Baby2Baby, is open to babies from birth through 24 months and gives one winner the chance to receive $25,000 and appear in nationwide, multi-channel advertising campaigns.

Once a child’s photo becomes part of an online competition, parents understandably want to know more about the systems surrounding that profile, including who can see it, how voting is protected, and whether they can change their minds about something they have shared. Baby of the Year is operated by Colossal, whose published Trust & Safety policies cover participant privacy, identity verification, voting integrity, payment security, and the additional controls used when a competition involves children.

Parents Create And Control Their Baby’s Profile

Only a parent or legal guardian can enter a child in Baby of the Year. The adult submitting the entry chooses the photograph and profile information, and the application is reviewed before the baby is accepted into the competition. Colossal may also request information confirming the child’s age or the adult’s legal relationship to the child, which helps establish that each profile represents a real and eligible participant.

Every accepted baby receives a unique profile page that parents can share with grandparents, friends, and other supporters once voting begins. Because voting takes place online, the page may also be visible to people within each group, so families should choose a photograph and description they are comfortable placing on a public page.

A profile can still feel personal without including every detail of a child’s daily life. Parents decide what they submit, and Colossal encourages families to share links thoughtfully while limiting the profile to information they are comfortable making visible during the competition.

Parents Can Request Changes Or Removal

Colossal allows parents to contact its support team when they need to correct information, update contact details, withdraw a child from the competition, or ask for personal data to be deleted.

For participants under 13 in all Colossal competitions, Colossal requires the consent of a parent or legal guardian and says its youth privacy practices comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, commonly known as COPPA. Parents retain the ability to review, correct, or request deletion of their child’s information throughout the process.

Personal Information Is Kept Separate From the Public Profile

Colossal states that access to sensitive participant information is restricted to a limited number of trained employees who need it for specific responsibilities, such as reviewing eligibility, auditing votes, processing payments, resolving support requests, or managing competition operations. The company also says it runs security scans, monitors its websites for vulnerabilities, and uses multiple layers of protection to reduce the risk of unauthorized access.

Colossal’s Trust & Safety standards state that personal information is not sold or shared for purposes unrelated to operating the competition. Parents retain ownership of the baby photos they upload while granting Colossal permission to display and use the submitted materials in connection with Baby of the Year, as described in the competition rules.

Voting Is Monitored Throughout The Competition

Baby of the Year uses public voting to determine which babies advance through each round, with every eligible supporter able to cast one free vote every 24 hours. Adults may also vote by donation, generating additional votes, with proceeds supporting the designated nonprofit organization through the campaign’s grantmaking structure.

Colossal monitors voting activity for bots, fraudulent votes, coordinated manipulation, and other unauthorized behavior that could affect the results. Votes found to be invalid may be removed, and the potential winner must complete an eligibility and identity review before the title is officially awarded.

Social media is used to authenticate the free daily vote, helping Colossal distinguish individual supporters from automated or duplicate accounts. The social media page does not operate Baby of the Year or determine which child advances, and Colossal says information used for voter verification is not sold or shared for unrelated purposes.

Payment information associated with donation votes is encrypted and handled through secure payment systems. Those financial details remain separate from the child’s public competition profile and are available only to the personnel and payment providers involved in processing the transaction.

Parents Can Reach A Real Person With Concerns

Privacy questions involving a child often need more context than an automated response can provide, particularly when a parent wants a specific photo reviewed or needs help withdrawing an entry. Colossal says every privacy-related support message is handled by a real person rather than a support bot, giving families a direct way to request assistance.

That support system is one part of a broader structure designed to keep parents involved in every decision concerning a child’s participation. Families choose whether to enter Baby of the Year, decide which photo and information to share, and retain a clear route for requesting changes while Colossal manages identity checks, voting reviews, data security, and the other operational work that takes place beyond the public profile.

This contest is not sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with the publisher. All prizes, rules, and details are determined by the organizer and are subject to change. Please refer to the organizer’s official website for the most current information.

BDG Media newsroom and editorial staff were not involved in the creation of this content.