A law that goes into effect Jan. 15 gives Ohio parents greater control over their kids’ social media accounts and internet activity.
The law, called the Social Media Parental Notification Act, forces social media brands and any other platforms marketed to or reasonably accessed by children under 16 to obtain formal consent from the child’s parent or legal guardian before establishing an account. Those platforms must also create tools for parents to censor or moderate the content their child comes across in-app.
Passed at the behest of Lt. Gov. Jon Husted as part of the state’s operating budget earlier this year, the law will impact brands like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter), Twitch, YouTube and many other online platforms.
If a platform either fails to provide parental notification or if a parent wants to terminate their child’s account, Ohio parents can submit a formal request to the platform, which then has 30 days to terminate the account, according to a Wednesday release from Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, whose office is tasked with enforcing the law. If the account is still operational after that window, parents can file a complaint with the AG’s office.
“This law aims to give parents more control over their children creating new social media accounts,” Yost said. “So just like any other time, if you feel like you’ve been wronged by a company, we take those complaints and work to resolve any issues — this is no different.”
Ohio parents can file their complaints with the A.G.’s office at OhioProtects.org.
