Texas governor signs law mandating age verification on Apple and Google app stores

Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Tuesday signed a bill into law requiring Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) to verify the ages of users on their app stores, placing the nation’s second-most-populous state at the forefront of the growing debate over regulating smartphone use among children and teens.

The law, effective on January 1, requires parental consent to download apps or make in-app purchases for users aged below 18, Reuters reported.

Utah was the first U.S. state to pass a similar law earlier this year, and U.S. lawmakers have also introduced a federal bill.

Another bill in Texas, already passed by the House of Representatives and awaiting a Senate vote, aims to restrict access to social media apps to users aged 18 and older.

“The problem is that self-regulation in the digital marketplace has failed, where app stores have just prioritized the profit over safety and rights of children and families,” Casey Stefanski, executive director for the Digital Childhood Alliance, told Reuters.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) opposed the Texas bill, arguing that it imposes broad requirements to share users’ age data with all apps, including those that are not controversial.

In February, Apple introduced a series of new child safety measures, including a requirement for users to select an age range when setting up a new device.

In other news, Meta (META) shareholders will vote on a resolution asking the social media giant to assess its child safety impacts and whether harm to children on its platform has been reduced.

Meta Platforms’ (META) so-called digital companions for use on its Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp services will talk sex with users, including children, The Wall Street Journal reported late Saturday.