Introduction to the New Social Media Law in Florida that Requires You to Be This Old to Post
A nation well known for its beautiful beaches, resorts, amusement parks, and for its nautical creations have come up with the new law regulating the social media users under the age of 16. Florida requires you to be mentally capable of understanding the nuances and consequences of social media before using it. The New Social Media Law in Florida will have a large impact on a huge number of young users which you should know. Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida signed a measure in March that, when it takes effect the following year, would severely limit children’ access to social media. The recently ratified legislation is the most recent in a long line of state-level initiatives to control, limit, or manage social media sites. Though with differing degrees of success and legal obstacles, similar initiatives have failed in numerous state legislatures and have reached the desks of governors in places such as Utah, Texas, Arkansas, and Ohio.
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What’s there in the Bag of Law for you?
The primary focus of the bill (HB3) is on kids who are less than 16 and the social media sites they choose to utilize. The age restriction regulates that the majority of social media sites now have in place will be formalized and extended by one year to exclude children under the age of 14. Social media usage by minors under the age of 14 or 15 is permitted, but only with express parental consent.
The new law’s enforcement is mostly the responsibility of the social media companies. According to HB3, all platforms that meet the requirements must cancel any accounts owned by minors under the age of 14 and provide them a 90-day window to contest the cancellation.
In the same way, accounts that the social media platform treats or classifies as belonging to an account holder who is probably 14 or 15 years old for the purposes of targeting content or advertising will be closed down if the account holder is 14 or 15 and does not have consent from their parents or guardians.
Put differently, social media companies will be expected to do more than simply screen out profiles with age fields of 14 or 15; instead, they will need to utilize their fantastic targeting data to find users who are likely that age as well.
Account holders under the age of 15 and their parents or guardians may also seek the termination of their accounts if the social media platforms are unable to locate and delete all of the profiles. In such cases, the social media platforms will have five and ten business days, respectively, to fulfill the request.
Penalties
The Punishment Platforms may face harsh fines if they “knowingly or recklessly” break these regulations and neglect to remove all user data in Florida that is under 15 years old. Florida may seek civil fines of up to $50,000 for each infraction, in addition to any related charges and fees, if the platforms don’t comply with the legislation to the satisfaction of the state.
A procedure enabling users, along with their parents or guardians, to sue social media companies and receive awards of up to $10,000 in damages per account is also established by law.
Which Platforms on Social Media Are Affected?
The law establishes a set of standards to assess whether a particular platform would be subject to the new obligations, instead of naming specific services. For a website, forum, or application to qualify as a social media platform under the law, it needs to:
- Permit users to publish material and access that of others.
- Require at least 10% of its customers who are younger than 16 to log on to the service for two or more hours per day.
- Using algorithms, individuals’ personal data is used to curate content for them.
- Possess a minimum of one of these attributes:
A. Scrolling never ends.
B. Push alerts.
C. Metrics related to personal interaction (likes, upvotes, replays, etc.)
D. Videos that play automatically.
E. Broadcasting or live-streaming.
The bill will go into force on January 1, 2025. The new rule allows 14- or 15-year-old minors to have a social media account with parental permission. If a parent or legal guardian hasn’t given permission, accounts that already belong to teenagers that age must be removed.
“Spending all day buried in those devices is not the best way to grow up—it’s not the best way to get a good education,” Republican Ron DeSantis stated on Monday during a ceremony honoring the bill’s signing.
Legislators have cited new research showing a connection between young adults’ usage of social media and an increased risk of depression and other mental health issues. Additionally, it may leave individuals open to harassment and predatory behavior online.
A Snap spokesman opted not to respond. Meta Platforms did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A request for comment from X and TikTok representatives was not immediately answered.Other states have also proposed legislation along similar lines, although it falls short of the complete prohibition passed in Florida. A rule that would have forced social media users to verify their age and obtained parental approval before opening an account for a child was halted by a federal judge in Arkansas in late August.
Conclusion
The Arkansas law was challenged in court by NetChoice, a trade group for the digital sector whose members include Snap, TikTok, and Facebook parent Meta Platforms. Similar legal challenges were made by the group against planned social media regulations in Ohio and California. A few social media sites have already started to limit the information that is visible to minors. Most websites protect minors under the age of 13 from data collecting; however, older minors are usually exempt from these rules.
- Sanal Pillai
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