More US States Are Preparing Age-Verification Laws for App Stores (politico.com)
- Reference: 0180557794
- News link: https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/01/10/054252/more-us-states-are-preparing-age-verification-laws-for-app-stores
- Source link: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/01/05/big-tech-won-in-texas-but-the-age-verification-fight-is-just-getting-started-00709160
> In Texas, Utah and Louisiana, parent advocates have linked up with conservative "pro-family" groups to pass laws forcing mobile app stores to verify user ages and require parental sign-off. If those rules hold up in court, companies like Google and Apple, which run the two largest app stores, would face massive legal liability... California has taken a different approach, [3]passing its own age-verification law last year that puts liability on device manufacturers instead of app stores. That model has been better received by the tech lobby, and is now competing with the app-based approach in states like Ohio. In Washington D.C., a GOP-led bill modeled off of Texas' law is wending its way through Capitol Hill. And more states are expected to join the fray, including Michigan and South Carolina.
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> Joel Thayer, president of the conservative Digital Progress Institute and a key architect of the Texas law, said states are only accelerating their push. He explicitly linked the age-verification debate to AI, arguing it's "terrifying" to think companies could build new AI products by scraping data from children's apps. Thayer also pointed to the Trump administration's [4]recent executive order aimed at curbing state regulation of AI, saying it has galvanized lawmakers. "We're gonna see more states pushing this stuff," Thayer said. "What really put fuel in the fire is the AI moratorium for states. I think states have been reinvigorated to fight back on this."
He told Politico that the issue will likely be decided by America's Supreme Court, which in June [5]upheld Texas legislation requiring age verification for online content . Thayer said states need a ruling from America's highest court to "triangulate exactly what the eff is going on with the First Amendment in the tech world.
"They're going to have to resolve the question at some point."
[1] https://yro.slashdot.org/story/25/12/23/2235204/judge-blocks-texas-app-store-age-verification-law
[2] https://www.politico.com/news/2026/01/05/big-tech-won-in-texas-but-the-age-verification-fight-is-just-getting-started-00709160
[3] https://www.politico.com/news/2025/10/13/california-law-online-age-checks-00606115
[4] https://www.politico.com/news/2025/12/11/trump-orders-government-to-fight-state-ai-laws-00687948
[5] https://www.aclutx.org/press-releases/aclu-comment-supreme-court-decision-free-speech-coalition-v-paxton/
Re: (Score:1)
Authoritarianism gives them a hardon. Like the ICE agent who shot an unarmed white woman in the face. He has a Filipina wife and flys a don’t tread on me flag at his home. However he loves wear a mask and treading on others all day.
Inconsistent (Score:2)
I can go to any website and download software for a PC without any of this verification, at all... So what exactly is different or special if the software is on a phone? Why is this somehow "worse"?
pyromania (Score:1)
I love how the legal system is, on the one hand (for you and me) doubling down on all their absolute stupidest bullshit, and on the other, just absolutely disregarding white collar crime on a massive scale which is performed so obviously, flagrantly, in broad daylight and with not even the respect of an attempt to hide it, and they just pretending they aren't an interested party. fuck everything about all of it, especially your pseudo-objective pretensions
Justice is not blind, it's just given up on you and
That CA one is the worst of all (Score:2)
If Politico's article is accurate (*) then the California law is the most absurdly evil of all, making Texas legislators look like Free Software-friendly angels by comparison. California legislators and governor think this is a hardware problem!
They've put the burden on hardware manufacturers. Somehow Dell, System 76, etc is supposed to be in charge of making sure that their laptops can communicate the user's age to websites, regardless of whatever OS and applications the owner wants to run on their own la
Is freedom only allowed... (Score:2)
For people who are "old" enough, and that "young" people have to be detained in mollycoddled prisons? That seems to be the for multiple countries so called online safety laws. Linux will get made illegal to use if they get their way, proprietary software is handcuffware, when they require anti cheat, who are the real cheaters?
Coordinated attack on free speech (Score:4, Insightful)
This is nothing short of coordinated attack on First Amendment and free speech. While it is not strictly necessary, all implementations so far are de-anonymizing. This is the purpose and the goal - to remove any and all anonymity for online speech so it is possible to suppress dissent. Turnkey authoritarianism.
Both Dems and GOP hate free speech (Score:3)
Free speech makes it possible to criticize people in power and neither political party likes that. Politicians will use any and all excuses, think of the children, [1]combating antisemitism [floridapolitics.com], [2]protecting trans rights [cpr.org], etc., etc. Don't fall for this emotional manipulation, these laws designed to do one and only one thing - erode your constitutional right to free speech.
[1] https://floridapolitics.com/archives/607700-gov-desantis-signs-law-cracking-down-on-hate-speech-says-florida-led-the-way-fighting-antisemitism/
[2] https://www.cpr.org/2025/02/18/deadnaming-transgender-harassment-bill/
Re: (Score:3)
What do all the states mentioned in the article have in common?