NEW YORK — New York State is asking for public input on the recently signed laws to protect children online to help create the rules that the Attorney General will put in place.
On June 20, Governor Kathy Hochul signed the SAFE for Kids Act and the Child Data Protection Act to limit addictive social media feeds and data collection of children.
The SAFE for Kids Act states that kids under 18 will be limited to only the accounts they follow on social media sites like TikTok and Instagram, and notifications will be blocked from midnight to 6 a.m. unless social media sites receive verifiable parent consent. The Child Data Protection Act limits social media companies’ ability to collect, purchase, or sell the personal data of children under 18 without consent from parents.
Attorney General Letitia James gives the public until September 30 to comment on the new legislation.
“By offering everyone, supporters and opponents of the recently signed legislation, the opportunity to submit comments and information, my office will ensure that we can better address concerns and priorities,” said Attorney General James.
Parents, children, advocates, and social media companies can submit their comments, suggestions, and information to the Office of the Attorney General.
“To truly protect the well-being of New York kids and families, we need to set strong rules and guidelines that limit Big Tech companies' ability to keep kids glued to their devices,” said Danny Weiss of Common Sense Media, the lead advocacy organization that helped pass legislation. “We look forward to submitting our views and priorities, and encourage all New York families, as well as the big tech companies themselves, to take advantage of this open process and contribute their own insights.”
The public can submit comments about the SAFE For Kids ACT to ProtectNYKidsOnline@ag.ny.gov and about the Child Data Protection Act to ChildDataProtection@ag.ny.gov by September 30, 2024.