Texas is the latest state to adopt age-verified laws. Despite lobbying from Big Tech, including individuals from Apple CEO Tim Cook, Governor Greg Abbott signed a parental approval for requiring app stores to verify users’ age and obtain parental approval for minors to download software or make in-app purchases.
The sponsor of the Texas Act said it aims to protect children and teenagers from inappropriate content. Bill writer Angela Paxton takes the tools into the hands of parents and makes decisions for their children. “The Republican state senator has married Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
It is the first state to enact legislation, which will assume responsibility for checking the age of users. Similar to Texas’ efforts, Google also asked the governor of Utah to provide a petition for the bill. Apple and Google have opposed these age verification measures, believing that they pose a privacy risk to all users by creating new infrastructures that require submission of personal information. “We think there are better advice that can help keep children safe without millions of people handing over their personal information,” Apple said of the new Texas law.
