A bill has been signed by Ron DeSantis, Florida State Governor to ban children below 14 from having social media account in the state.
The bill mandated all social media companies to delete all existing accounts of those under 14 as any company that fails to follow the rules will be sued on behalf of the child who open an account on the platform and will be liable for $50,000 per violation, legal fees and court costs while the kid may get damages of up to $10,000.
This is to help parent raise kids safely in this difficult environment we have now.
In addition, those who are 14 or 15 will need their parent’s permission before joining the platform and all citizens of Florida must provide ID or other identifying materials.
This HB3 is to take effect in January 2025, and it aims to impose liability or a duty of care on apps and online platforms to protect child and stop exploitation on the internet as over 200 Organisation wrote to Senate majority Charles Schumer, D-N.Y in December requesting a vote on Kids Online Safety Act, or KOSA to be scheduled.
Carl Szabo, Vice President and General Counsel for NetChoice stated in an email, calling the law unconstitutional as its violate their freedom but DeSantis has called out NetChoice that the bill is constitutionally sound as it will control the addictive factors that makes kids spending endless amounts of time on these platforms.
