Company Pushes for Liability Protection in Proposed Online Safety Legislation
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) has reportedly urged U.S. lawmakers to include legal protections for technology companies facing child-harm claims linked to social media platforms such as Instagram, according to a source familiar with the discussions and draft legislative language reviewed by Reuters.
The proposed provision is being discussed as part of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), legislation currently under consideration in the U.S. Senate. If incorporated into the bill and ultimately enacted, the measure could significantly affect thousands of ongoing lawsuits involving Meta and other online platforms over alleged harm to minors.
Meta and Google’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) YouTube are already facing combined damages of $6 million after losing the first case to reach trial earlier this year.
Draft Proposal Could Limit State-Level Claims
The legislative language reviewed by Reuters would grant online platforms broad protection from lawsuits brought under state law regarding the online safety or privacy of individuals under the age of 18.
The proposal would make companies “immune from suit or liability under state law with respect to all claims for loss caused by, arising out of, relating to, or resulting from the safety or privacy of individuals under the age of eighteen online or otherwise related to the provisions” of KOSA.
The language also appears alongside provisions designed to pre-empt state-level legislation covering children’s online safety and privacy issues.
While lawmakers have not indicated any intention to adopt the proposal, the effort highlights the legal safeguards Meta is seeking as Washington considers its most significant technology regulation package in decades.
Meta Says Proposal Would Create National Standards
Responding to questions about the lobbying effort, Meta spokesperson Stephanie Otway rejected suggestions that the provision would provide blanket protection from legal action.
She said the measure “does not extinguish existing lawsuits, nor does it represent blanket immunity.”
Otway added: “Instead, it establishes uniform national standards for online youth safety, ensuring these critical issues are governed by comprehensive federal legislation, not plaintiffs’ lawyers or patchwork state legislation.”
Critics Warn of Broad Legal Immunity
Opponents of the proposal argue that the language could have sweeping consequences for current and future legal claims.
Julia Duncan of the American Association for Justice said the measure would likely eliminate many lawsuits that remain active when the law takes effect.
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