NY passes milestone ban on ‘addictive’ social media feeds for children

New York kids’ social media feeds are about to get less “addictive.”

State lawmakers in Albany passed a landmark measure Friday to give parents more control over their kids’ social media usage on apps such as TikTok and Instagram.

The law is almost certain to face a drawn out legal challenge from Big Tech companies, but ultimately could have a nationwide impact on how social media apps deliver content to kids.

“Our children are enduring a mental health crisis, and social media is fueling the fire and profiting from the epidemic,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James, who pushed for the twin bills, in a statement.

“New York state is once again leading the nation,” she said, “and I hope other states will follow suit and pass legislation to protect children and put their mental health above big tech companies’ profits.”

Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids Act requires social media companies to verify users’ ages and obtain parental consent to give kids access to algorithmic feeds.

Kids who don’t get parental consent to view “addictive” algorithmic feeds still will be able to see social media content, but in a chronological timeline of posts.

The legislation also gives parents the ability to pause notification on their children’s social media accounts between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m.

Another bill, the New York Child Data Protection Act, bars tech firms from selling or otherwise profiting off minors’ data.

Gov. Kathy Hochul is expected to sign both bills into law.

Big Tech companies sank roughly $1 million in lobbying efforts to tank the legislation.

Julie Samuels, president and CEO of Tech: NYC, a group that has been lobbying against the legislation, praised the bills’ intent of protecting children — but noted a lot was still in the air about how they will be enforced.

“These bills include some positive changes that will bring them closer to achieving lawmakers’ intention of protecting children online — a goal that Tech:NYC and our member companies support. These changes signal an intention to better tailor the definition of social media, and remove the private right of action,” she said in a statement after the vote.

“However, neither the platforms impacted by these bills nor any of the lawmakers voting on them have any clarity on how age verification will work.”