Idaho governor signs bill protecting children from social media exploitation

The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Chelsey Youman of the ADF Center for Public Policy regarding Idaho Gov. Brad Little’s signing Thursday of HB 542, the Stop Harms from Addictive Social Media Act (SHASM Act):

“Children are not experiments, and their private information is not a commodity. The Stop Harms from Addictive Social Media Act directly confronts the root cause of harm to children online by stopping social media companies from addicting them for profit. It protects children by keeping them off social media by default unless their parents give permission. And for kids’ accounts, it prohibits addictive design features and data exploitation of children. The result is a commonsense solution that puts children’s mental health and family protections ahead of corporate incentives. We commend Gov. Little, bill sponsors Rep. Jaron Crane and Sen. Cindy Carlson, and the other supporters of children’s safety in the Idaho Legislature for their support of this needed law.”

Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.

# # #