In the US state of Louisiana, a proposed law on child and youth protection was rejected, which would have required app store operators to help enforce age restrictions on third-party applications. Apple stood by its word and successfully contested. The case is especially interesting in relation to EU law, since the draft law on chat control also stipulates that large app stores must check the age of their users.
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Consent management: The federal government wants to tackle the flood of cookie bannersThe Louisiana bill was actually about regulating smartphone use by children and young people. In recent months, several US states have proposed or passed laws that would limit the ability of social media platforms to collect data from minors. In Louisiana, the distribution of age-inappropriate personalized ads and the creation of user accounts without parental consent would also be banned. The bill threatens platforms that do not take proper precautions with “substantial penalties.”
Apple was initially left out of the debate because, as is well known, the iPhone maker does not operate social media. That changed, however, when Republican Rep. Kim Carver added a provision to Louisiana’s related bill earlier this year after consulting with a lobbyist from Facebook and Instagram parent Meta. Accordingly, app store operators should be obliged to cooperate with age verification and exclude minors from using certain apps.
Meta lobbies, but Apple wins
Representatives of social media platforms and child protection groups welcomed the proposal. They also saw it as a duty to app store operators: Age verification done on a per-app basis was a disappointing approach, said Chris McKenna, founder of Protect Young Eyes, an initiative that promotes child protection in the digital world. , In contrast to that The Wall Street Journal. Every smartphone knows the age of its users. McKenna advises Apple on, among other things, digital child protection issues.
A Meta spokesperson also told the Wall Street Journal it was “impractical” to leave age verification to the operators of social media platforms. With offerings like the iOS App Store or Google’s Play Store, there’s already a central point through which this can happen. This would also relieve the burden on parents, who would no longer need to provide proof of identity for every app their children use.
Parents can control device usage
Apple saw things differently. Meta was trying to shift its child protection problems onto the company, the company said. Apps and websites are best placed to check the age of their users. A company spokesperson said sharing users’ ages with third-party apps would also violate users’ privacy. He said the operating system provides parents with tools to control their children’s device use.
In Louisiana, an amendment requiring Apple and other app store operators to verify age was eventually removed from the bill. Effectiveness has not been proven. Since the law was passed, social network operators are now required to verify the age of their users living in Louisiana.
Gatekeepers must take action in the EU
Politicians in Germany are also seeking to impose strict age controls on social networks. The Digital Services Act (DSA), which comes into force on November 16, 2022, has long recommended that very large online platforms with more than 45 million monthly users perform age checks.
If the EU Commission resumes the talks on chat control, which are currently stalled, there is another point the company is concerned about, besides Apple’s refusal to scan user data stored in iCloud for CSAM (child sexual abuse material) which would be contrary to the EU Commission’s proposed law. Not to mention the larger conflict over opening up the App Store as part of the Digital Market Act (DMA).
(KST)
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