Get ready for face scans, expanded surveillance, violated rights, and more, say critics
California Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday signed AB 2273, legislation designed to protect children’s online privacy by demanding information from everyone.
The California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act (AB 2273) was modeled after the UK’s age-appropriate design code.
Approved last month by the State Senate, and previously by the State Assembly, the California law requires online platforms to consider the interests of children in the design of their services and to provide children with settings that default to privacy.
“We’re taking aggressive action in California to protect the health and wellbeing of our kids,” said Governor Newsom (D) in a statement. “As a father of four, I’m familiar with the real issues our children are experiencing online, and I’m thankful to Assemblymembers Wicks and Cunningham and the tech industry for pushing these protections and putting the wellbeing of our kids first.”
The Age-Appropriate Design Code (AADC) Act forbids online service providers that offer service to children from using the personal information of children in a way that’s detrimental, from gathering, selling, or storing a child’s geo-location, from profiling by default, and from soliciting children to provide their information. It also requires privacy policies and related terms be accessible and enforced.
Jim Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, a content-rating service for patents, applauded the approval of the law.
“We recognize that this bill is just one step in a long-term effort to protect kids online,” said Steyer in an emailed statement. “But it is a very important step, and time is of the essence – we must continue the momentum to expand platform accountability and online protections for children across California and the rest of the country.
