SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Industry groups representing TikTok and other big tech companies announced Monday the nation’s first law requiring children and teens to get parental consent to use social media apps. sued the state of Utah over
Two laws signed in March by Republican Gov. Spencer Cox prohibit minors from using social media between 10:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m. unless they have parental permission, and prohibit social media Require age verification to open and maintain an account. situation.
This restriction aims to protect children from targeted advertising and addictive features that can have a negative impact on their mental health. Both laws will take effect on March 1, 2024.
The NetChoice industry group says in a federal lawsuit that Utah’s regulations, while well-intentioned, are unconstitutional because they restrict access to public content, violate data security, and impair parental rights. It is claimed that there is.
“We are fighting to ensure that all Utahns have access to digital tools without coercive government control,” said Chris Marchese, director of the NetChoice Litigation Center. The industry group includes many of the world’s largest social media companies, including TikTok, Snapchat parent company Snap Inc., Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta, and X, formerly known as Twitter.
Cox predicted there would be lawsuits challenging both bills, as a growing body of research shows how social media use can negatively impact children’s mental health. , said he was not worried.
Cox argued earlier this year that “these companies are killing our children, and we’re not going to back away from potential legal challenges.”
The governor’s office did not immediately respond to an email Monday seeking comment on the lawsuit. Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes’ office will represent the state in court.
“While Utah is reviewing the lawsuit, we remain focused on the goal of this bill: protecting young people from the negative and harmful effects of social media use,” said spokesman Richard Piatt.
In a separate lawsuit brought by NetChoice, a federal judge temporarily blocked the state of Arkansas from enforcing a new law requiring minors to obtain parental consent to create new social media accounts. Similar laws have not yet been enacted in Texas and Louisiana.
Utah’s state law imposes steep fines on social media companies that fail to comply with age verification rules, which NetChoice says allows companies to collect too much personal information from users, resulting in online fraud. It is said that safety may be threatened. State regulations prohibit companies from using designs or features that make children addicted to apps.
Under the law, parents would have access to their children’s accounts and would be able to more easily sue social media companies for harming their children. The law shifts the burden of proof from families to social media companies, requiring them to prove their products are not harmful. Social media platforms with at least 5 million users will be subject to the new regulations.
The lawsuit also challenges state-imposed social media curfews, saying they can harm children by cutting them off from news, learning tools and peer communication. .
NetChoice asked a federal judge to halt the law from going into effect while the lawsuit makes its way through the judicial system.