Governor Kathy Hochul unveiled her first State of the State proposals on January 5, which she said will continue to build on her progress to keep New York’s kids safe online and combat the youth mental health crisis statewide.
The new legislation would help protect children from online predators, scammers and harmful AI chatbots integrated on online platforms. Additionally, the Governor is proposing a first-of-its-kind, statewide expansion of Teen Mental Health First Aid training, designed to give young people the tools to identify, understand, and effectively respond to signs of mental health and substance abuse challenges among their friends and peers.
“As New York’s first mom Governor, the well-being and safety of our children has always been one of my top priorities, and today we are continuing to break new ground to give our kids the tools and safeguards they need to contend with the unprecedented mental health challenges and real world dangers that can sometimes be a byproduct of navigating today’s digital world,” Hochul said. “These proposals will create a nation-leading standard that will ensure our kids’ safety in online and real-world environments where they spend time.”
Numerous lawsuits and investigations have alleged that online platforms have not taken appropriate steps to protect the children using them. These online platforms allow children and adults to contact each other worldwide — which leaves children susceptible to grooming, child abuse, and exposure to violent and inappropriate content, including suicide.
The governor’s proposed legislative package to keep kids safe from emerging threats on social media and online gaming platforms will include:
- Expanding Age Verification: Expanding requirements for platforms to conduct age verification, including online game platforms.
- Privacy by Default: Kids would be set to the highest privacy settings on covered platforms by default, meaning non-connections cannot message kids, view their profile, or tag them in content. Location settings will be turned off by default, and children under 13 must receive parental approval for new connections.
- Disabling AI Chatbot Features: Disabling certain AI chatbot features on social media platforms for kids.
- Parental Controls: Parents must be able to set limits on children’s financial transactions.
This package draws on existing legislation sponsored by State Senator Andrew Gounardes (D-Park Slope) and Assemblymember Nily Rozic (D-Flushing).
“Online platforms like Roblox are enabling unsafe environments for children, including allowing predators to send explicit messages to children,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said. “We urgently need to pass crucial online safety protections to stop predators from exploiting children and create safer online environments for children to play.”