Twin bills in Michigan, HB 4429 and SB 284, which would have mandated age verification for software, operating systems, and even hardware, have been withdrawn. Sadly, the reason for the withdrawal wasn’t objection to the government being able to control who can and can not use these devices and systems, but that said information wouldn’t be kept “private” enough:
“Critics said the legislation lacked key privacy protections, including limits on data use, restrictions on combining data with other personal information and requirements for deletion.
“‘The infrastructure these bills would have created is a persistent, always-on identity layer baked into the operating system of every device in Michigan, with no accompanying privacy protections,’ said Patrice Johnson, chair and co-founder of the Michigan Fair Elections Institute. ‘These bills would not have improved that standing; they would have deepened the gap and reaped long-term negative effects on fair elections.’”
Many also pointed out how the text of the legislation was the same or similar to other age verification legislation in other states.
“The group further questioned the origins of the legislation, saying the bills closely resembled proposals introduced in other states and were likely based on model legislation proposed by the Digital Childhood Alliance, the national organization promoting this legislation across more than 20 states.
“‘These two bills are legislative siblings—they share the same core architecture and even the same name,’ said Eric Rasmussen, a University of Michigan privacy advocate who reviewed the measures who helped lead the effort to pull the bills. ‘This is not a coincidence.’”
With enough pressure on legislators, even Leviathan can be kept away from your computer.
