Arkansas passed a law that will push social media companies to require age verification before users can create their profiles on a digital platform. The social media bill, also known as SB396, is the latest example of how U.S. lawmakers and regulators have taken a more aggressive step in recent years to protect underage teens online.
Arkansas' 'Social Media Safety Act' to Take Effect in September
As reported by Engadget, Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders recently signed the "Social Media Safety Act," making Arkansas the second state in the country to impose an age limit on the use of social media platforms. With the latest bill, online users under 18 years of age will need to undergo verification before they can create a social media account. They will also need to get parental consent before proceeding with the account creation.
The age verification system will need the help of third-party entities to verify the users' identification. Legal documents will be required to complete the verification, such as a driver's license and other valid IDs.
The Socia Media Safety Act will take effect in September, but lawmakers believe that the law couldn't come any sooner as more underage social media users have become exposed to harmful online content. According to them, the bill will give parents more control over their children's social media activities.
The latest Arkansas bill also gives a definition of a social media platform, which is "any online forum that lets users create public profiles and interact with each other through digital content."
Utah is the first American state to pass a social media law, which also aims to restrict the social media access of young users. It also requires age verification to create a social media profile. As of writing, three more states in the country are on their way to passing the same legislation, according to CNN.
Related Article: California Governor Passes Children's Online Safety Bill to Protect Underage Social Media Users
Latest Social Media Bill in the U.S. Exempts Some Digital Service Providers
For the past couple of years, there is a growing pressure to legislate an age restriction for social media access. More teens have experienced mental health issues that are linked to the content that they see on social media.
As for Arkansas' social media law, some critics pointed out that there are evident loopholes and exemptions that contradict the essence of passing the bill. It appears that some companies that helped in the passing of the bill are exempted from the age verification system. For example, media companies that are "exclusively" offering subscription services are not required to verify their users' age.
The same applies to social media companies that allow their users to "generate short video clips of dancing, voice overs, or other acts of entertainment," as well as companies that offer exclusive, video game-focused features, as per the CNN report.
The amended version of the then-proposed bill before being signed into law also included the exemption of digital companies that sell cloud storage services, cybersecurity companies, and educational and technological companies that utilizes less than 25 percent of their total revenue to operate their online platforms.
