The State of New York has enacted a new law known as the Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids Act, which mandates that social media companies must limit algorithms recommending content on feeds that can make users “addicted” for those under the age of 18. Moreover, it prohibits sending notifications to these users between 0:00-6:00 a.m. without parental permission.
This legislation also grants authority to the New York State Attorney General’s office to penalize companies with fines of up to $5,000 for each violation. The next step requires State Governor Kathy Hochul’s signature for the law to come into effect. She has made it clear that New York will be a model state in protecting children from social media platforms that can cause addiction and subsequent mental health issues.
New York is considered the first state to pass such local legislation, with other states like California having similar draft laws, and at the federal level, there is a proposed Kids Online Safety Act being pushed in Congress.
TLDR: New York has taken a proactive approach by passing the SAFE for Kids Act to combat addictive social media feeds and safeguard children online. Governor Kathy Hochul has shown strong support for this legislation.
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