US Senate passes amendments for two federal bills on protecting children online
The US Senate passed amendments for two federal bills focused on safeguarding children online. One amendment extends the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act to cover children up to age 17, while the other, the Kids Online Safety Act, requires tech companies to limit harm to minors and increase transparency in platform algorithms for research purposes. These measures now advance for a full Senate vote.
The US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation passed updates to two federal bills to protect children online: An update to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA).
COPPA governs the obligations of websites and online services to protect the privacy of children under the age of 13 and is enforced by the US Federal Trade Commission. The major update to COPPA is to extend the act to children who are aged 17.
KOSA imposes an obligation on technology companies to prevent harm to minors. It is also asking platforms for more transparency in their algorithms for users and researchers so that researchers can study the effects of various platforms on minors.
Both bills will move on to the Senate for a full vote.