Accountable Tech Statement on Senate Passage of KOSA and COPPA 2.0

Accountable Tech Co-Founder and Executive Director Nicole Gill issued the following statement on the Senate’s passage of the Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act (KOSPA), a package bill that includes the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and Children and Teen Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0):

“The Senate passage of KOSA and COPPA 2.0 is a long overdue step toward ensuring the online safety and privacy of children and young people who, for decades, have been exploited and monetized by Big Tech without consequence. Today’s near unanimous, bipartisan vote has shown that advocates for accountability – including the many young people and parents who spent years on Capitol Hill sharing their experiences of harm at the hands of Big Tech – are more powerful than the biggest companies in the world and their industry lobbyists.

“We applaud Senators Blumenthal, Blackburn, and Markey, and Leader Schumer for championing kids’ online safety and prioritizing our kids’ wellbeing over Big Tech’s pursuit of profit. This is a major turning point in our movement’s efforts to take on tech’s outsized influence on the lives of young people. We now look to the House of Representatives to bring this bill to a vote so that we can finally regulate an industry that has used its power and wealth to protect its own interests over the public good for far too long.”

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Accountable Tech is a non-profit organization advocating for digital justice by reining in Big Tech’s threats to society and democracy with legislative, regulatory, and structural solutions. Through strategic initiatives and creative campaigns, Accountable Tech is challenging the industry’s toxic business model in order to protect data privacy, preserve the health of democracy, and create safer online platforms. We are leading the movement to advance a better, more human-centered digital future, and tech for the common good. To learn more, visit accountabletech.org.

Statements

Aug 28, 2024

Accountable Tech Statement on Advancement of California’s Landmark AI Safety Bill

Today, the California General Assembly passed the Safe and Secure Innovation for Frontier Artificial Intelligence Models Act (SB 1047) — a landmark bill that would require AI developers to adhere to common sense safety guidelines for new AI models. The legislation, which is sponsored by California State Senator Scott Wiener, would introduce crucial guardrails around AI development, including requiring pre-deployment safety testing and third-party auditing. The bill will head back to the State Senate for a confirmation vote and then to Governor Gavin Newsom’s desk.

Statements

Aug 16, 2024

Accountable Tech on Appeals Court Ruling on the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act

Accountable Tech Executive Director and Co-Founder Nicole Gill issued the following statement on the Ninth Circuit Court’s narrowing of the district court’s injunction blocking California’s Age-Appropriate Design Code: The Ninth Circuit’s ruling makes clear that the lower court’s injunction was far too broad. The district court must now reconsider the safety-by-design and privacy-by-default protections central to the Age-Appropriate Design Code.