this post was submitted on 15 Apr 2026
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"Key questions remain unanswered, such as the definition of “operating system provider,” the type of verification required, the focus on major commercial platforms, and the potential scope beyond them."
I guarantee this bill is unenforceable. Cars, phones, traffic lights all have have computers with operating systems. All modern tech has an operating system of some sort. Also how do you even verify age? If my laptop is offline can I just not use it because it can't confirm my id? What about tech that never goes online but has an OS, like a calculator? I can't believe microsoft and apple are not lobbying against this. Who becomes liable if an "underage" person is accidentally given access or if access is denied to an "of age" person. I can just imagine an emt frantically looking for their driver's license so they can use the computerized defibrillator.
What is this argument? You and I both know they want this age verification at the OS level for personal computing devices: phones, tablets and computers, maybe watches.
Is this really what’s going to kill this law? Semantics?
Yeah, that's kind of what laws are all about
Yeah actually. A lot of laws get shitcanned into irrelevance due to being worded like shit on everything from the local to federal levels. That's not even getting into conflicts with pre-existing well worded laws or the constitution as a whole.
If it's worded badly enough it may even just be thrown out on first test due to being vague and too widely applicable. Just for example I drive a 2001 Toyota Tacoma it has an operating system because it's got an ECU, how the actual fuck would that interact with this law? Obviously the corporate answer is to force me to get a new car but the actual practical answer is that that isn't viable, so it's more likely the courts just gut an entire section of the law with one case. Keep up the gutting and sooner or later it'll end up defunct.