Louisiana passes bill banning kids from the internet without parental consent
Illustration: Alex Castro / The Verge
State lawmakers in Louisiana passed a new bill Tuesday banning minors from creating their own social media accounts.
The bill, HB61, would ban “interactive computer services” from allowing people under 18 to sign up for their own accounts without parental consent. The bill’s definition of online services is extremely broad, seemingly barring minors from creating social media accounts on sites like Instagram, accessing popular online games like Roblox and Fortnite, or even registering for an email address. The bill also goes as far as allowing parents to cancel the terms of service contracts their children entered into when signing up for existing accounts.
As of publication, it’s unclear how the state plans to enforce these new rules,…
