New York has finalized the SAFE for Kids Act rules, requiring age verification and parental consent for personalized social media feeds and overnight notifications for minors.
At a Glance
- New York has finalized the SAFE for Kids Act rules.
- Social media platforms must verify users’ ages before enabling certain features.
- Parents must give permission for personalized algorithmic feeds for users under 18.
- Overnight notifications for minors will be turned off by default unless parents opt in.
- The law is designed to reduce addictive social media features and give families more control.
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I admit I do the very thing we tell our kids not to do. I get in bed, pull out my phone, and catch up on social media. It’s the one quiet time in a hectic day, and most of the time, my algorithm pulls me right in. It’s pretty difficult to keep our kids from doing the same when it’s just so tempting, and that’s partly why Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York State are stepping in.
Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James just released the final rules for the SAFE for Kids Act, a law aimed at dialing back the features that make social media so hard for kids to put down. The rules spell out exactly how companies have to verify users’ ages and get parental sign-off before turning on certain features for anyone under 18.
What Is the SAFE for Kids Act?
At its core, this law hands parents more control over their kids’ social media experience and takes aim at the features built to keep people scrolling.
The biggest target is the algorithm-driven feeds, the endless stream of videos and posts an app serves up based on everything you’ve ever clicked, watched, or lingered on. New York officials argue these feeds aren’t just convenient; they’re engineered to keep kids hooked, and that’s contributing to some genuinely unhealthy habits.
Under the new rules, platforms can’t just switch on that personalized feed for an under-18 user by default. They’ll need verified parental consent first.
Changes Kids Will See
Kids aren’t getting kicked off social media, but the experience is going to look different once this kicks in:
- The for you style feed will be turned off by default, unless a parent opts in
- Instead of algorithm-picked content, teens will mostly see posts from accounts they follow
- Notifications go silent between midnight and 6 am for minors, unless parents say otherwise
- Kids can still search, browse, and use the app
Companies Will Verify Age
There will be age verification, and before a platform can unlock those restricted features, it has to confirm the user is an adult.
Companies have a few ways to do that. They can verify a phone number or email, have users upload a photo or short video, or use other approved age-check tools.
And platforms have to offer at least one way to do this that doesn’t require a government ID. Whatever method they use, New York’s rules say they can only collect the minimum data necessary, and they can’t hang onto it longer than needed.
What Parents Can Do
Parents get to say yes or no to these features, and they can change their mind later if they want to loosen or tighten things up. If a parent says no, their child isn’t locked out of the app entirely.
They can still search, browse, and use the parts of the platform that don’t rely on algorithmic feeds or overnight notifications.
Why New York Is Doing This
State officials point to research linking heavy social media use, especially algorithm-driven feeds, to rising rates of anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and eating disorders among kids and teens.
This law isn’t a standalone effort. It’s one piece of a broader push in New York to protect kids online, alongside new rules on child data privacy, AI safety, and smartphone bans in schools.
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