Title I: Kids Online Safety
1. Duty of Care: High-impact online companies must take reasonable measures to prevent and mitigate various harms to minors, such as mental health disorders, compulsive usage, cyberbullying, and sexual exploitation.
2. Safeguards for Minors: Platforms are required to implement safeguards for minors, including communication controls, limitations on addictive design features, and tools for parental control. Default settings must offer the highest level of protection.
3. Transparency: Covered platforms must produce annual public reports on the risks to minors, the effectiveness of preventive measures, and other relevant data, based on independent third-party audits.
4. Disclosure: Platforms must provide clear, accessible information to users and parents about the risks associated with their services, including the use of personalized recommendation systems.
5. Research on Social Media Harms: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will partner with the National Academy of Sciences to study the effects of social media on minors, focusing on mental health, substance abuse, and addiction-like behaviors.
6. Market Research: The FTC will issue guidance for platforms conducting market research involving minors, including how to obtain informed consent and tailor research practices to different age groups.
7. Age Verification: A study will be conducted on the feasibility and implications of creating age verification systems at the device or operating system level.
8. Enforcement: The FTC and State Attorneys General are empowered to enforce the Act, treating violations as unfair or deceptive acts.
Title II: Filter Bubble Transparency
1. Algorithm Transparency: Platforms that use opaque algorithms (which rely on user-specific data to personalize content) must notify users and provide them with the option to switch to an input-transparent algorithm, which does not rely on such data.
2. Prohibition on Differential Pricing: Platforms are prohibited from charging different prices or offering different levels of service based on a user’s choice of algorithm.
Title III: Relationship to State Laws
1. Preemption: The Act preempts state laws only when they conflict with its provisions. States are permitted to enact laws that offer stronger protections for minors than those provided by this Act.
Read Full Text:
https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/7891/text