A bill that would force online platforms to act in the "best interests" of minors is making waves on Capitol Hill.
The bipartisan Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and the Children and Teens' Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0), which would extend the Children's Online Safety Act to any user under the age of 17, are both up for a vote in the Senate Commerce Committee this week, the Hill reports.
But the American Action Forum, a First Amendment advocacy group, says the bills "could come with significant costs to user privacy and access to information" and could violate the First Amendment.
The group says the bills "could seriously impact users' rights to view content and speak online anonymously, away at two of the foundational principles of a free and open internet, while at the same time increasing the amount of sensitive information platforms collect from users."
COPPA 2.0, for example, "would also increase the amount of data firms must collect, store, catalogue, and potentially delete for all users, including minors, undermining the stated goal of the legislation," the group says.
President Biden has urged Congress to pass the bills.
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Caroline Diehl is a serial social entrepreneur in the impact media space. She is Executive Chair and Founder of the UK’s only charitable and co-operatively owned national broadcast television channel Together TV, the leading broadcaster for social change runs a national TV channel in the UK and digital platform which helps people find inspiration to do good in their lives and communities.