Regulating access to technology based on an age-related threshold is quickly gaining traction in various parts of the globe. For instance, Australia has banned under-16s from using social media under a new law, and in the US, a Congress committee continues to deliberate on a bill that would force Apple and Google to verify the age of all smartphone users.
The US House Energy and Commerce Committee members remain laser-focused on regulating age-based access to smartphones by compelling Apple and Google to implement an authentication mechanism
The US House Committee on Energy and Commerce is deliberating on a number of measures to protect kids and teenagers online via the so-called Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA).
The Senate's version of the legislation is already filibuster-proof, with co-sponsors hitting the requisite 60-vote threshold. Critically, this version imposes a "duty of care" requirement on all "covered platforms," which include online platforms, video games, messaging applications, and video streaming services used by individuals under the age of 17
The panel leaders of the US House Committee on Energy and Commerce, however, deem the language used in the Senate bill as too closely resembling the policies that US courts have previously struck down as unconstitutional. Accordingly, the committee members are pushing their own version of the bill, which envisages a comprehensive guardrail around online platforms, one that would force such platforms to implement measures that protect youngsters from violence, fraud, obscenity, gambling, drugs, and alcohol.
The committee is also deliberating on banning the social media accounts of all under-16 users, instituting a national age verification mechanism for sexually explicit websites, and giving parents more control over their child's communication with other players in online gaming.
Critically, the committee members are also mulling whether to force Apple and Google to implement an age verification mechanism for all smartphone users in the US.
In fact, Apple's Tim Cook has just had a meeting with the House committee members to lobby against proposals that would require the Apple App Store to implement universal age verification under the so-called App Store Accountability Act, which seeks to protect minors from potentially harmful apps. The House committee is slated to deliberate on the bill on Thursday.
Apple's position is that such mandates compromise user privacy and that there are better ways of protecting youngsters online without resorting to invasive data collection.
About the author: Writing is my one incontrovertible passion. Over the past six years, he has authored over 2,200 distinct articles on financial and tech-related topics, spanning nearly 1 million words. And he has been a member of Wcctech mobile team since 2025. As an alumnus of the University of Toronto, Rotman Commerce Program, I bring nuance, in-depth knowledge, and a unique perspective to every topic that I cover. When I'm not writing, I'm traveling the world, exploring hidden confectionaries and restaurants as an aspiring food connoisseur.
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