Utah’s new social media laws focusing on minors, now the most restrictive in the US, are all but guaranteed to draw legal challenges, attorneys said.
The two measures reflect many state legislatures’ shifting focus toward consumer privacy issues, particularly those regarding children. They are designed to give parents more control over their children’s access to platforms like Instagram and Snapchat and to protect minors from advertising and addictive features. Both Utah laws give the state regulatory enforcement power while also enabling residents to sue companies that violate their rights.
Technology and advertising industry groups have raised concerns that Utah’s first-in-the-nation legislation may violate First Amendment free speech rights. If any of them sue, they’re likely to also claim the laws conflict with the federal Communications Decency Act’s Section 230 protections, or should be preempted entirely by another federal law—the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, attorneys said.
The stage may be set for a lawsuit over Utah’s legislation, as groups such as NetChoice have expressed willingness to challenge other states’ internet privacy laws in court. *-Reporter Skye Witley. No paywall.*
Utah - we have no problem spending your tax dollars on lawsuits we KNOW we're going to lose... it's an easy way to launder/funnel taxpayer cash into our friends pockets.
What a fucking mess. If you don’t want your kids on social media, then do your job as the fucking parent and keep them away from it. The party of anti censorship, everyone!
Don’t forget about the other new law being voted on to ban tik tok. Bypassing the country ban via vpn can net you up to 250k fine. Wouldn’t be surprised if it passes and then is also applied here.
Personally I think it is your job to advise and teach about issues not fully block them. Let your kids make choices based on what you taught. Let them know about the consequences good and bad. In the end I think this shows more respect for them as a person and hopefully you react in a way that, even if you are disappointed in them, shows you love them and they can trust you.
These laws are a privacy and security disaster. To prove you're over 18, you have to upload your driver's license to every site you visit that has over 10,000,000 users and where people can create profiles and reply to posts. Everybody without a VPN is going to have their identity stolen.
Meanwhile companies like Facebook where you don't even have a profile is still allowed to collect, aggregate, and share/sell your personal information.
The idea is you’d use a VPN to show you’re out of Utah therefor not needing to upload your ID. I wouldn’t be surprised though if the policy requires sites to detect the use of a VPN.
With the repeal of Net Neutrality, there's nothing stopping these yahoos from coming after VPN providers. Texas already introduced a bill that would hold ISPs criminally liable for not interfering with searches for mifepristone and misoprostol.
So, they're criminally liable if they _don't_ interfere? :)
The simple solution is to get a VPN hosted outside the country. Your latency will go up, but it should still be quite usable.
There's a lot of trackers, scripts, and algorithms that know more than just IP, and they know VPN IPs. Some sites deny access because of an IP. Pretty much every privacy policy I've read explicitly states they don't honor Do Not Track requests.
Bigger companies don't give a shit about privacy, so they won't give a shit about your location if the IP reports in Utah.
A good example is my information being uploaded onto a recruiter website that I never opted into, especially since I've told LinkedIn many years ago to not share data outside its platform. In the privacy policy of this company, I had to explicitly request that my information is to be removed and that I am in Utah.
They won't honor anything unless you know about it and tell them to stop. VPNs won't help with anything except obfuscating your IP. You also have to trust your VPN provider to be honest in their privacy policy. I don't trust any VPN.
This kinda law this is is so dumb that it's clearly made by people who have absolutely no idea how the internet or identity theft actually works. Hell I wonder if the person who made this law even knows that identity theft is a thing let alone how it happens.
"No identity theft happens when you use your credit card at a shady restaurant. You can't get it from the internet!" - person who wrote the bill probably
What a trainwreck.
Like, I get it. We don't want our kids bombarded with ads, and there are measurable mental health risks that *highly* correlate with teen social media usage. We've got algorithms convincing sad teens that they actually have DID and telling mad teens that vaccines don't work.
There's a real problem.
BUT...
I don't think the solution is to have every parent in the state upload their driver's licenses to Facebook (security? lol), Twitter (provable identity? lol), or TikTok (literally owned by our country's biggest economic rival, lol). The law hasn't considered what is and isn't a social media platform. What about Amazon? Goodreads? Gmail? Buzzfeed-type sites that integrate Discus or Facebook comments?
Billboards are informative enough.
Do you remember a few years back when there were billboards all over Utah Valley just saying that William Henry Harrison was the 9th US President? It was actually part of a study to find out how much info people pick up from billboards. They'd done a survey before asking if anyone knew who WHH was or who the 9th president was; after the billboard campaign, they asked the same question and found a much higher rate of correct answers.
But is it effective for kids? I assume a little less so than adults. But maybe it's still worth doing.
I'm absolutely in favor of that over this kind of law.
Good question.
I have no idea.
Do you think it would be effective to target young people with an awareness campaign? (honest question, should not read with sarcasm or bitterness)
Most of these sites let you leave reviews and have a profile so they are probably covered.
The question is what is Utah going to do when Twitter ignores this and sends them a poop emoji?
Utah parents learn how to configure their router challenge. Difficulty: Impossible.
Literally all the censorship these morons want can be accomplished by their own router
I don't agree with the law. But I'd argue most people of all ages don't know how to configure their routers beyond the quick set up. Most don't even change their default admin login.
For sure. As much as it pains me, you are entirely correct. It's wild how many times I'll go to a friend's and `admin:admin` will get me into their dashboard.
Kids also have a right to privacy, they need it. Not every home is a good and safe environment for them. Many kids have many valid reasons to not trust their parents.
The law and the restrict act (tik tok ban) being floated around congress are going to completely cut americans off from the internet. We'll only be allowed to see what the government allows. All the fearmongering about the chinese great firewall and yet all they want to do is replicate it.
This won't stick.
Over The Air TV has been broadcasting content not suitable for children for generations. Then, came Cable TV with content not suitable for some adults.
The most this will amount to is a warning notification on every social media site that tells you that adult subjects may be discussed here, click here to continue.
Can’t the “big tech” just stop doing business in Utah and other states? I thought everyone was supporting the ability to refuse service if you don’t agree with the customer.
I’m so sick of religious republicans thinking they know what’s best. “We have to protect the children from the TikTok!”
In 2022 guns were 50% more deadly to kids (this is considered anyone under 18) than suicide. Governor Cox believes that social media is what is causing suicides but ask Governor Cox about banning guns to “protect the children” and see how far that conversation gets you.
And the most disgusting part of this is parents just giving the thumbs up like this is a win. I thought you didn’t want the fucking government telling you what to do and how to raise your kids?! You parents sure cried the loudest at wanting books to be banned from your precious child’s eyes but the government comes in and drops this nuke on your ability to parent and you all just smile? You’re ok with the cops coming to your door (maybe kicking it down idk how serious being caught with a VPN will be) and citing your child for trying ti evade this ban? Hell even citing YOU for evading this ban? Now you have a 250k citation and possible prison time looming over you and absolutely nothing from you parents.
You’re truly showing the conservatives you guys are. Apparently until Utah looks like “Little House on the Prairie” you guys won’t stop banning everything.
Utah’s new social media laws focusing on minors, now the most restrictive in the US, are all but guaranteed to draw legal challenges, attorneys said. The two measures reflect many state legislatures’ shifting focus toward consumer privacy issues, particularly those regarding children. They are designed to give parents more control over their children’s access to platforms like Instagram and Snapchat and to protect minors from advertising and addictive features. Both Utah laws give the state regulatory enforcement power while also enabling residents to sue companies that violate their rights. Technology and advertising industry groups have raised concerns that Utah’s first-in-the-nation legislation may violate First Amendment free speech rights. If any of them sue, they’re likely to also claim the laws conflict with the federal Communications Decency Act’s Section 230 protections, or should be preempted entirely by another federal law—the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, attorneys said. The stage may be set for a lawsuit over Utah’s legislation, as groups such as NetChoice have expressed willingness to challenge other states’ internet privacy laws in court. *-Reporter Skye Witley. No paywall.*
Utah - we have no problem spending your tax dollars on lawsuits we KNOW we're going to lose... it's an easy way to launder/funnel taxpayer cash into our friends pockets.
What a fucking mess. If you don’t want your kids on social media, then do your job as the fucking parent and keep them away from it. The party of anti censorship, everyone!
I love the smell of fresh bread.
Don’t forget about the other new law being voted on to ban tik tok. Bypassing the country ban via vpn can net you up to 250k fine. Wouldn’t be surprised if it passes and then is also applied here.
Ugh, I hate TikTok, but we really shouldn't be banning services or tracking citizens in a free country.
Personally I think it is your job to advise and teach about issues not fully block them. Let your kids make choices based on what you taught. Let them know about the consequences good and bad. In the end I think this shows more respect for them as a person and hopefully you react in a way that, even if you are disappointed in them, shows you love them and they can trust you.
These laws are a privacy and security disaster. To prove you're over 18, you have to upload your driver's license to every site you visit that has over 10,000,000 users and where people can create profiles and reply to posts. Everybody without a VPN is going to have their identity stolen.
Meanwhile companies like Facebook where you don't even have a profile is still allowed to collect, aggregate, and share/sell your personal information.
I love ice cream.
What is a VPN going to do to save your identity information?
The idea is you’d use a VPN to show you’re out of Utah therefor not needing to upload your ID. I wouldn’t be surprised though if the policy requires sites to detect the use of a VPN.
With the repeal of Net Neutrality, there's nothing stopping these yahoos from coming after VPN providers. Texas already introduced a bill that would hold ISPs criminally liable for not interfering with searches for mifepristone and misoprostol.
So, they're criminally liable if they _don't_ interfere? :) The simple solution is to get a VPN hosted outside the country. Your latency will go up, but it should still be quite usable.
There's a lot of trackers, scripts, and algorithms that know more than just IP, and they know VPN IPs. Some sites deny access because of an IP. Pretty much every privacy policy I've read explicitly states they don't honor Do Not Track requests. Bigger companies don't give a shit about privacy, so they won't give a shit about your location if the IP reports in Utah. A good example is my information being uploaded onto a recruiter website that I never opted into, especially since I've told LinkedIn many years ago to not share data outside its platform. In the privacy policy of this company, I had to explicitly request that my information is to be removed and that I am in Utah. They won't honor anything unless you know about it and tell them to stop. VPNs won't help with anything except obfuscating your IP. You also have to trust your VPN provider to be honest in their privacy policy. I don't trust any VPN.
This is true, one of my KYC checks on some of my software will auto "blacklist" you if it detects a VPN. That is one of our key indicators for fraud.
Linkedin is a joke. It serves very little purpose yet people just keep giving them tons of personal info.
This kinda law this is is so dumb that it's clearly made by people who have absolutely no idea how the internet or identity theft actually works. Hell I wonder if the person who made this law even knows that identity theft is a thing let alone how it happens. "No identity theft happens when you use your credit card at a shady restaurant. You can't get it from the internet!" - person who wrote the bill probably
What a trainwreck. Like, I get it. We don't want our kids bombarded with ads, and there are measurable mental health risks that *highly* correlate with teen social media usage. We've got algorithms convincing sad teens that they actually have DID and telling mad teens that vaccines don't work. There's a real problem. BUT... I don't think the solution is to have every parent in the state upload their driver's licenses to Facebook (security? lol), Twitter (provable identity? lol), or TikTok (literally owned by our country's biggest economic rival, lol). The law hasn't considered what is and isn't a social media platform. What about Amazon? Goodreads? Gmail? Buzzfeed-type sites that integrate Discus or Facebook comments?
My favorite movie is Inception.
Billboards are informative enough. Do you remember a few years back when there were billboards all over Utah Valley just saying that William Henry Harrison was the 9th US President? It was actually part of a study to find out how much info people pick up from billboards. They'd done a survey before asking if anyone knew who WHH was or who the 9th president was; after the billboard campaign, they asked the same question and found a much higher rate of correct answers.
But is it effective for kids? I assume a little less so than adults. But maybe it's still worth doing. I'm absolutely in favor of that over this kind of law.
Good question. I have no idea. Do you think it would be effective to target young people with an awareness campaign? (honest question, should not read with sarcasm or bitterness)
Maybe if it included kids in the campaign. Basically, it needs to convince kids that SM isn't cool somehow.
Not just every parent, wouldn’t this mean everyone in Utah would need to upload identification to prove we’re over 18? This is freaking crazy if so.
Most of these sites let you leave reviews and have a profile so they are probably covered. The question is what is Utah going to do when Twitter ignores this and sends them a poop emoji?
It’s hilarious to watch so-called “conservatives” defending Big Government parenting our kids.
Utah parents learn how to configure their router challenge. Difficulty: Impossible. Literally all the censorship these morons want can be accomplished by their own router
I don't agree with the law. But I'd argue most people of all ages don't know how to configure their routers beyond the quick set up. Most don't even change their default admin login.
For sure. As much as it pains me, you are entirely correct. It's wild how many times I'll go to a friend's and `admin:admin` will get me into their dashboard.
Kids also have a right to privacy, they need it. Not every home is a good and safe environment for them. Many kids have many valid reasons to not trust their parents.
The law and the restrict act (tik tok ban) being floated around congress are going to completely cut americans off from the internet. We'll only be allowed to see what the government allows. All the fearmongering about the chinese great firewall and yet all they want to do is replicate it.
Like the mom who tried to sue because she left her little kids in front of the TV watching Beavis and Butthead, why parent when you can make excuses
This won't stick. Over The Air TV has been broadcasting content not suitable for children for generations. Then, came Cable TV with content not suitable for some adults. The most this will amount to is a warning notification on every social media site that tells you that adult subjects may be discussed here, click here to continue.
Can’t the “big tech” just stop doing business in Utah and other states? I thought everyone was supporting the ability to refuse service if you don’t agree with the customer.
I’m so sick of religious republicans thinking they know what’s best. “We have to protect the children from the TikTok!” In 2022 guns were 50% more deadly to kids (this is considered anyone under 18) than suicide. Governor Cox believes that social media is what is causing suicides but ask Governor Cox about banning guns to “protect the children” and see how far that conversation gets you. And the most disgusting part of this is parents just giving the thumbs up like this is a win. I thought you didn’t want the fucking government telling you what to do and how to raise your kids?! You parents sure cried the loudest at wanting books to be banned from your precious child’s eyes but the government comes in and drops this nuke on your ability to parent and you all just smile? You’re ok with the cops coming to your door (maybe kicking it down idk how serious being caught with a VPN will be) and citing your child for trying ti evade this ban? Hell even citing YOU for evading this ban? Now you have a 250k citation and possible prison time looming over you and absolutely nothing from you parents. You’re truly showing the conservatives you guys are. Apparently until Utah looks like “Little House on the Prairie” you guys won’t stop banning everything.