Utah becomes the first US state to limit social media access for teens and requires social media firms to get parental consent for children to use their apps.
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Governor Spencer Cox signed the two bills Thursday to protect teens under 18 on social media. According to the BBC, parental consent is needed before a child can create a profile on Instagram, Facebook, and Tiktok. Additionally, a social media curfew was implemented as children will be blocked from using social media between the hours of 10:30 pm and 6:30 am local time, and companies will not be able to collect a child’s data or be targeted by advertisers.
Governor Cox wrote on Twitter, “We’re no longer willing to let social media companies continue to harm the mental health of our youth. As leaders and parents, we have a responsibility to protect our young people.”
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The law is being considered by other states such as Arkansas, Texas, Ohio, Louisiana, and New Jersey. However, the children’s advocacy group Common Sense Media said the new legislation could harm children, but Cox’s move was a “victory for kids and families in Utah.”
Meta also said in response that they already have initiatives in place to protect children on social media.
“We’ve developed more than 30 tools to support teens and families, including tools that let parents and teens work together to limit the amount of time teens spend on Instagram, and age verification technology that helps teens have age-appropriate experiences.”
Some social medial user believe the bill wouldn’t work since children are tech savvy and will figure out a way to bypass the law’s requirements.
California has a similar law that was passed last year to protect child’s data on the internet. The California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act permits digital platforms to enforce privacy features for users under-18 as a default setting.
The two bills are slated to take effect on March 1,2024