The California legislature passed Assembly Bill 1709 (A.B. 1709) today, which functions arsenic a sweeping prohibition connected societal media use for young group nether the property of 16. This well-intentioned, but profoundly flawed portion of legislation, cuts young group disconnected from basal accusation and experiences, peculiarly harming susceptible younker and marginalized groups who often find information successful supportive online communities they can't entree offline. That’s why we’re urging Governor Gavin Newsom to veto the measure.
Should the rule spell into effect successful January, platforms would beryllium prohibited from offering virtually each functional proposal algorithm and basal input, specified arsenic who a personification follows aliases what posts they like, to anyone nether 16. These alleged "addictive features," are successful reality the basal devices that online services usage to place what different user-generated contented a peculiar personification mightiness want to see. Users besides trust connected these features to find audiences for their ain speech, arsenic good arsenic community. By labeling these basal devices arsenic "addictive," the measure relies connected sweeping generalizations regarding the unsettled science of younker societal media use. Because astir each awesome work relies connected automated feeds, the eventual consequence is that young group nether 16 will still beryllium locked retired of awesome integer services arsenic they presently exist.
A.B. 1709 is simply a monolithic privateness and free reside nightmare.
A.B. 1709 is simply a monolithic privateness and free reside nightmare. Denying young group entree to integer forums (or stripping retired the basal devices needed to navigate them) does thing to make young group safer aliases healthier. Research shows that societal media bans are ineffectual, and tin beryllium harmful erstwhile they contradict young group opportunities to create their ain voices and perspectives, whether that intends sharing art, practicing religion, aliases engaging successful politics.
Far from protecting children, the measure will besides severely restrict entree to constitutionally protected reside and push platforms to instrumentality invasive age-verification methods, specified arsenic requiring authorities IDs aliases biometric scanning. Age-gating requirements will unit everyone to springiness large tech companies moreover much individual information. To verify who tin walk done online gates, companies will cod moreover much data, concentrating power successful firm hands alternatively than protecting users. This creates monolithic honeypots of sensitive individual data, severely damages online anonymity, and exposes users of each ages to heightened data breach risks.
Finally, A.B. 1709 introduces ineligible disorder by creating provisions that conflict pinch already enacted authorities for illustration A.B. 1043 and S.B. 976. Rather than offering regulatory clarity connected already-passed laws, California will only extremity up spending valuable resources to take sides a rule bound to beryllium tied up successful court.
For much details, you tin publication our afloat missive to the Governor here.
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