Fla. Senate Votes 34-3 to Allow Decryption of Minors' Social Media Messages
Nearly the entire Florida Senate supported a social media decryption bill that the Electronic Frontier Foundation condemned as “dangerous and dumb” (see 2504110042).
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Florida senators voted 34-3 Thursday to pass SB-868, which would require decryption of young users’ social media messages during law enforcement investigations. The Senate also adopted an amendment. The bill still needs House approval; that chamber’s Commerce Committee cleared a similar proposal (HB-743) on Tuesday.
“If law enforcement obtains a warrant or subpoena, provide a mechanism to decrypt end-to-end encryption or other data encryption features that restrict the accessibility of messages on any account of a minor so that law enforcement may view messages relevant to a criminal investigation involving a minor,” said the amended requirements for social media platforms.
“Allow a parent or legal guardian of a minor account holder to view all messages,” they continued. “Prohibit a minor account holder from using or accessing messages that are designed to disappear after a certain period of time or upon viewing, self-destructing messages, or messages that are ephemeral in nature.”