Legislative panel wants to support app store, device-based age verification for minors • South Dakota Searchlight

Companies that Operate app stores or do Mobile phones and tablets could be required to verify the age of their users in South Dakota under proposed legislation introduced Wednesday in Pierre.

Legislator with the Study Committee on Artificial Intelligence and Regulation of Internet Access for Minors voted unanimously to ask the state Legislative Research Council to draft the two “age limits” bills for submission during the 2025 legislative session, which begins in January.

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During the seven-hour hearing, committee members heard testimony for and against the age verification strategy. A representative from Facebook parent company Meta and online safety advocates supported the ideas, among others; Representatives of trade groups for app developers and other technology companies protested against them.

No state has passed app- or device-based age verification laws, but Meta is among the players that have signaled support for the idea, and U.S. Rep. John James, R-Michigan, introduced an app-based verification bill in 2016 Congress.

“This is a bipartisan idea, a common sense idea,” said John Schweppe, political director for the Virginia-based company American Principles Projectwhich he described as “a family-friendly conservative group.” “People have honestly agreed for a long time that we should protect children from harmful material online.”

Schweppe pointed to the passage of age verification laws in 19 states that place the burden of verification on websites or social media companies. The South Dakota House of Representatives passed a similar bill this year, but it was defeated in a Senate committee.
Other states' bills have faced legal challenges from tech companies who claim they violate adults' First Amendment rights. One such law from Texas is currently awaiting a hearing before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Proposals will be assessed using a “one and done” age check

App-based age verification would require app stores from companies like Apple or Google to offer parental controls, many of which are already available. App stores would be required to take “commercially reasonable and technically feasible measures” to determine or estimate a user’s age and require those under 16 to obtain a parent’s permission before downloading apps to mobile devices.

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The law requires app stores to send “a digital signal” to websites, applications or online services to indicate whether a person accessing them is under 13 years old, between 13 and 16, between 16 and 18 or is older than 18 years.

Companies developing apps would have to use this information to “provide readily available features” that would allow parents to limit their child's time on the app, see who their “friends” are on social media apps , and see who their “friends” are, who their kids are messaging, and who their kids have blocked.

The device-based age verification proposal would include the same requirements for app stores, but would also require device makers to attempt to determine a user's age and send digital signals.

Some social media apps already offer parental control features similar to those that would be required under such a proposal. Meta recently rolled out a series of updates to Instagram designed to give parents more control and more restrictive experiences for teen accounts.

Nicole Lopez, Meta's youth safety policy officer, appeared in person at the South Dakota Capitol on Wednesday to explain some of these features and pledge her support for the app-based age verification proposal.

“While Meta takes a robust, multi-faceted approach to age determination, we are just one part of the online ecosystem,” Lopez said. “The reality is that children are not only getting smartphones at younger and younger ages, but they are also hopping from app to app, app to app.”

A University of Michigan study, Lopez said, found that teens use an average of 40 apps per week. An app-based age control system “will not only make it easier for parents, but also give them the ability to monitor their teens’ online experiences.”

Joel Thayer, president of the nonpartisan Digital Progress Institute, said an app store-based system could be the easiest way to create safeguards against the evils of social media.

“The evidence is staggering,” Thayer said, that “social media is harmful to children.” He pointed to a recent call by the U.S. Surgeon General for a warning label on social media, as well as a number of statistics showing depression, problems with Body image and an increase in suicidal thoughts among teens are linked to spending five or more hours a day on social media.

“The good news is that states like yours can take action,” Thayer said.

An app store-based system with digital signals “represents a complete solution for apps.”

“You only have to prove it to the App Store once,” he said.

Opponents: Free Speech Concerns, Unintended Consequences

Kristian Stout of the Portland, Oregon-based nonprofit International Center for Law and Economics testified against the proposal. App store data on user age can be unreliable, he said, and forcing companies to devote resources to creating digital signals could stifle innovation in smaller companies.

Stout also explained some ways users can bypass digital signals. For example, users can switch their mobile browser to desktop mode, “which gives a website the impression that you are not on a mobile device,” thereby preventing mobile device signals – and the associated content age restrictions – from being sent when a user tries to access adult content through an app like Reddit.

“Smart kids know how to do this,” Stout said. “If I know how to do it and I'm 47, my 16-year-old son definitely knows how to do it.

Stout was also among the witnesses who encouraged lawmakers to consider an approach that prioritizes educating parents and children about online safety and the tools in place to track youth behavior.

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Justin Hill of NetChoice, a trade group for technology companies, told lawmakers that it was unnecessary to pass laws that couldn't pass the First Amendment test when there were already so many options for parents.

“The devices already do everything that was said today,” Hill said.

Hill's organization also submitted a written statement opposing app-based age verification, as did the Computer and Communications Industry Association in a letter to the Legislature.

The political director of this organization, Khara Boender stated that digital literacy is crucial. She also spoke about the bills' assumptions about traditional family structures in a country where not all children live with their parents, and how the device-based proposal raises questions about how the law would deal with devices that were not purchased new.

“If a cousin or sibling graduates and receives a new phone as a graduation gift, they may pass the phone on to a younger sibling where we actually need to ensure that the protections and device settings that are currently in place are enabled correctly,” Boender said.

Two proposals receive support in the committee

Committee members had to consider four versions of the age verification bills on Wednesday. One focused on app store-based age verification, another focused on app store and device-based verification. Each would impose civil and criminal penalties on companies that fail to comply.

Another version of the App Store-based proposal only included civil penalties.

Another proposal would revive the 2024 bill, which would have required website-based age verification to access adult content. This bill was sponsored by Rep. Bethany Soye, R-Sioux Falls, who is also a committee member. On Wednesday, she expressed concern that the App Store-based age limit would not solve the problem of minors accessing pornography through web browsers. Others testified along the same lines, arguing that South Dakota's failure to advance this bill is damaging its reputation as a state that cares about children.

“I think we need to stop talking about it and start talking about it,” said Karen McNeal, an independent Senate candidate from Rapid City.

The committee voted unanimously to send the first two proposals — which included civil and criminal penalties — to the Legislative Research Council for development. They also voted to submit a bill to the council that would define artificial intelligence under state law.

The committee's vice chairman, Republican Rep. Mike Weisgram of Fort Pierre, said the endorsements would not deter individual lawmakers from supporting the remaining proposals.