Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation Monday prohibiting children under the age of 14 from using social media platforms in the state. It also means that children aged 14 or 15 will be forced to get parental authorization before using these platforms.
HB3, a bill approved by Governor DeSantis, requires social media firms to delete existing accounts of children under 14. Failure to comply may result in lawsuits brought on behalf of the underage user, with potential damages of up to $10,000, as stated in the statute.
Companies found in violation of the statute may face fines of up to $50,000 per infraction, plus attorney’s fees and court costs.
“You can have a child in the house who appears to be safe, but there are predators who can go straight into your own home. You could be doing everything correctly, but they know how to access and manipulate these various platforms,” DeSantis said as he signed the law.
“Ultimately, [we’re] trying to help parents navigate this very difficult terrain that we have now with raising kids, and so I appreciate the work that’s been put in,” he said in a statement.
DeSantis had previously rejected a tougher version of the bill, which suggested barring social media accounts for children under 16 and requiring Florida citizens to provide identity or other verification documents when joining social media networks.
HB3 is set for adoption in January 2025.
Popular social media networks such as Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok often have a minimum age restriction of 13 for users, under the 1998 “Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule” (COPPA), which forbids the collecting of personal data from children without parental agreement.
According to The Washington Post, a 2022 poll performed by the nonprofit research organization Common Sense Media found a growing trend in usage among children aged eight to twelve.
Although the measure does not directly mention the social media platforms affected by the legislation, its text indicates that it applies to sites where more than 10% of daily active users under the age of 16 spend an average of two hours each day. The limitations established in the bill also apply to platforms with “addictive features” such as unlimited scrolling and push alerts.
According to the state’s House Speaker, Paul Renner, these habit-forming traits are essential to why children spend so much time on these platforms, leading them in potentially dangerous directions.
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