Gov. Sanders Signs Ark. Social Age Verification Law

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Sanders (R) signed a bill requiring age verification and parental consent to use social media (SB-396), the governor’s office said Thursday. It applies only to new accounts and requires kids under 18 to get parental consent to set up profiles on platforms that have at least $100 million annual revenue. NetChoice slammed the signing. “Age-verification requirements raise privacy concerns, adversely stifle freedom of speech online and pose serious First Amendment problems,” said General Counsel Carl Szabo. “It’s concerning to see states enacting proposals that will undermine constitutional protections while they’re trying to make a good-faith effort to protect minors online.” Utah enacted a similar law this year (see 2303240035). The Computer & Communications Industry Association "shares concerns about the safety of younger users online," but SB-396 creates other privacy problems, said CCIA State Policy Director Khara Boender. The law runs counter to data minimization principles, and "tying the verification of users to liability creates an incentive to store such data for longer periods of time," she said. The law's ban on storing such data "puts businesses in a Catch-22 to comply and not have proof that they ... verified the user's age or to not comply ... but be able to prove they complied with the verification measures," added Boender.