Since 2022, lawmakers have passed or considered legislation to place age restrictions on websites containing adult content. More recently, that focus has shifted to social media-specific sites. These laws are part of an effort to protect minors using the internet from exposure to potentially harmful content. However, there is concern about where the line is drawn in the balance of online privacy and the responsibility to keep children safe. The debate around this topic has quickly escalated, with Congress debating implementing age verification measures at a federal level and the U.S. Supreme Court considering challenging state laws.
States with legislation surrounding age verification for social media
Alabama
Status: Proposed
Alabama House Bill 276 was first introduced to the House in February of 2025. As of April 2025, the bill is still pending House review.
Arkansas
Status: Blocked
While initially passed in 2023, Arkansas Senate Bill 396 has since been blocked by a federal judge and deemed unconstitutional. The fate of the law will be determined once the NetChoice vs. Griffin lawsuit is resolved.
California
Status: Blocked
While initially passed in 2024, California Senate Bill 976 has since been blocked by a federal judge and deemed unconstitutional. The fate of the law will be determined once the NetChoice vs. Bonta lawsuit is resolved.
Connecticut
Status: Active
Effective as of July 1, 2023, Public Act No. 23-56 requires social media sites to delete accounts of minors under 16 years old within a set amount of time if requested by a minor or their parent or legal guardian.
Florida
Status: Active
Initially introduced in January 2024, Florida House Bill 3 was passed in March of the same year. Social media sites are required to terminate any account holder younger than 14. Users aged 14-15 must first gain parental consent prior to account creation on social media sites.
Georgia
Status: Active
Initially introduced in January 2024, Georgia Senate Bill 351, now Act 463, was passed in April 2024. Providers of social media platforms shall make reasonable efforts to verify the age of account holders, and users under 16 years of age must be treated as minors on the platform. No minors shall be permitted to have accounts unless parental consent is given.
Illinois
Status: Proposed
Illinois Senate Bill 2316 was introduced in February 2025. As of May 2025, it is still in committee for review.
Louisiana
Status: Active
Effective July 1, 2025, Louisiana Revised Statute 51:1752 states that providers of social media platforms shall make reasonable efforts to verify the age of account holders. No minors shall be permitted to have accounts unless parental consent is given.
Maine
Status: Proposed
Maine House Bill 530 was introduced in February 2025. As of May 2025, the bill has been read several times and the vote is currently divided, but is still being reviewed.
Nevada
Status: Proposed
Nevada Senate Bill 63 was introduced in February 2025. On March 18, 2025, the action of Waiver granted effective was completed. As of May 2025, there has been no further action. It is unclear where this bill currently stands in the legislative process.
New York
Status: Active
Effective December 17, 2024, New York Senate Bill S7694A established the Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids Act. This act prohibits addictive social media feeds to minors. This is done by prohibiting children younger than 18 years of age from accessing social media platforms unless given parental consent.
Ohio
Status: Blocked
Ohio Code Section 1349.09(B)(1) was initially passed in late 2023, with an effective date of January 15, 2024. The bill required children under 16 to gain parental consent prior to creating a social media or online gaming account. A federal judge has since placed a temporary restraining order on the law.
Rhode Island
Status: Proposed
Rhode Island House Bill 5291 was first introduced in February 2025. In March, it was recommended that a measure be held for further study. As of May 2025, no further action has been noted on this bill.
Tennessee
Status: Active
Tennessee House Bill 1891 and Senate Bill 2097, now Public Chapter Number 899, both establish the Protecting Children from Social Media Act. This required social media companies to verify the age of any individual who attempts to become an account holder for the first time. For minors trying to create an account, social media companies must verify express parental consent.
Texas
Status: Active
Effective September 1, 2024, Texas House Bill 18 establishes the duty of certain digital service providers to register a user’s age prior to account creation. For minors, parents or guardians must be verified.
Utah
Status: Active
Effective May 3, 2023, Utah Senate Bill 152 requires social media companies to verify the age of any Utah resident seeking to open a social media account. For anyone under the age of 18, the social media company must obtain consent from a parent or guardian.
Washington
Status: Proposed
Washington Senate Bill 5708 was initially introduced in February 2025. As of May 2025, it has undergone several readings. It currently sits with the Senate Rules Committee for the third reading.
How to verify age for social media
For social media sites that need to verify the age of users trying to create an account, simple check-box style age gating is no longer sufficient. Instead, social media sites need to incorporate true age verification. The most effective and simple way this can be accomplished is by sending an age verification request to a mobile device or email.
Verifying age online is a simple, straightforward process.
- The person trying to create an account takes a photo of the front and back of their ID. IDScan.net’s DIVE API then parses the data in the 2D barcode, looking for the date of birth of the individual and comparing it to today’s date.
- DIVE API performs 2D barcode security checks and front/back crossmatching to check for fake IDs. Although it is impossible to authenticate an identity document remotely, remote ID validation is capable of catching up to 50% of fakes.
- (Optional) For businesses that want to confirm identity as well as age, the user is guided through a face match selfie workflow with integrated liveness and anti-spoofing. This ensures that the customer’s face matches their ID photo, which prevents them from using the ID of an older individual to get around the age gating process.
- (Optional) Third party checks to databases like the DMV, or Social Security Administration can be layered on to confirm issuance of the presented ID.
- The API sends a “success” or “failure” signal to the website, which then triggers either ungating access or continuing to restrict content.
The full process takes less than 30 seconds and is successful in 97% of cases.
What’s next for age verification of adult content online?
There is still much to be discussed in the states where legislation is pending, and even in states where the laws have been passed, certain groups and sites, including NETChoice, whose members include TikTok, Meta, and X, have brought lawsuits against the age verification laws. These have escalated to the federal level. While it is not our place to debate the ethics of the laws, we will be continually updating our IDLaws portal, as well as this blog, with any updates or changes to the current or pending laws. Be sure to follow along for more information.
