The age-verification technology at issue in a pending U.S. Supreme Court case raises major privacy concerns, said Jennifer Huddleston, senior fellow in technology policy at the Cato Institute. Huddleston discussed with Free State Foundation adjunct senior fellow Mike O'Rielly the justices' argument earlier this month on a Texas age-verification law (see 2501130012 and 2501150073).
The Wyoming Senate received a bill requiring age verification Friday after the House approved it a day earlier.
Utah and Arizona bills requiring age verification online advanced in committee votes this week. Many states are mulling legislation this year focused on protecting kids on certain websites (see 2501170053).
Industry and consumer advocates on Wednesday voiced opposition against two kids’ social media bills that the Senate Commerce Committee is planning to take up.
The Indiana Senate voted 42-7 to approve an age-verification bill on Thursday, sending it to the House. The proposed online safety measure (SB-11) would prohibit kids 15 years old and younger from accessing social media unless they have parental permission.
A federal district court judge seemed skeptical of several tech industry arguments against California’s 2022 Age-Appropriate Design Code Act at oral argument Thursday. However, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Judge Beth Freeman also asked if she should wait for the U.S. Supreme Court to possibly rule on age-verification mandates in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton.
Nebraska legislators introduced kids online safety bills that Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen (R) and Attorney General Mike Hilgers (R) endorsed.
A South Dakota age-verification bill passed the state House Tuesday. Members voted 61-5 for HB-1053 with an amendment, sending the measure to the Senate.
Legislators in several states added to a growing pile of age-verification bills Friday. Kids privacy and online safety bills have been an early focus for these lawmakers (see 2501170053).
Virtual private networks, or VPNs, aren't the effective loopholes to age-verification laws that many think they are, Electronic Frontier Foundation staff said in a blog post Friday. Currently, 19 states have laws that require age verification before a user can access sites containing adult content, said bloggers Paige Collings, EFF senior speech and privacy activist, and Rindala Alajaji, EFF legislative activist.