Kids in Ohio Will Need Parental Consent to Create Social Media Accounts
By Movieguide® Contributor
A new Ohio state law will go into effect on Jan. 15, which requires children under 16 to obtain parental consent before opening a new social media account.
“This law aims to give parents more control over their children creating new social media accounts,” said Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost. “So just like any other time, if you feel like you’ve been wronged by a company, we take those complaints and work to resolve any issues – this is no different.”
Legislators approved the Parental Notification by Social Media Operators Act in July and covers “gaming platforms, shared message boards, etc. that target children or are reasonably anticipated to be accessed by children.” This includes Facebook, Snapchat, X (formerly Twitter), TikTok and Instagram.
“I support [the law] because I feel like some kids, they step over the bounds, and sometimes they use Instagram and social media to do certain things that isn’t really good for them,” 11-year-old Kevine Niyigena said, sharing her favor for the law.
This move by Ohio lawmakers follows the lead of Arkansas and Utah, which have both passed laws requiring children under 18 to obtain parental consent before opening a social media account and banning children under the age of 13 from using social media at all.
These decisions are becoming more common across the country as parents and public officials push to make social media safer for children. Last year, Montana lawmakers voted to ban TikTok in part for the harmful content that proliferates on the platform.
Furthermore, 41 state attorneys general filed joint lawsuits against Meta last October for the harmfully addictive practices of its social media sites. To protect children and restore their mental well-being, the lawsuits aimed to introduce features that make the platforms less addictive, such as an option to turn off the websites’ algorithmic feeds.
Movieguide® previously reported:
Forty-one states and the District of Columbia are suing Meta for building addictive features into its technology that harm children’s well-being.
“Our bipartisan investigation has arrived at a solemn conclusion: Meta has been harming our children and teens, cultivating addiction to boost corporate profits,” said California Attorney General Rob Bonta.
“We have a youth mental health crisis in the United States,” added Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser. “The young people were brought down rabbit holes.”
To hold Meta accountable for this alleged business practice, thirty-three states are filing a joint lawsuit against the company, while eight states and Washington D.C. are filing separate complaints in federal, state or local courts.
The complaints argue that Meta misled parents and children regarding its safety features, allowing it to illegally collect data on children for profit, thereby violating child privacy laws.
