TZUTC: -0500
MSGID: 1865.consprcy@1:2320/105 2dae92df
PID: Synchronet 3.21a-Linux master/123f2d28a Jul 12 2025 GCC 12.2.0
TID: SBBSecho 3.28-Linux master/123f2d28a Jul 12 2025 GCC 12.2.0
BBSID: CAPCITY2
CHRS: ASCII 1
FORMAT: flowed
Federal judge blocks Louisianas social media age verification law  here's why

Date:
Mon, 22 Dec 2025 12:47:54 +0000

Description:
Another state-level attempt to enforce age verification on social media has
been blocked. A federal judge ruled Louisiana's Act 456 unconstitutional,
citing major privacy and First Amendment concerns.

FULL STORY

US District Court has permanently blocked Louisiana's controversial social
media age verification law, declaring it unconstitutional just days before it
was set to be enforced. 

In a decision handed down this week, Judge John W. deGravelles ruled in favor
of NetChoice, a tech trade association representing giants like Meta, X
(formerly Twitter), and Google, arguing that the "Secure Online Child
Interaction and Age Limitation Act" (Act 456) violated the First Amendment. 

The law, passed in 2023, would have required social media platforms with more
than five million users to verify the age of every account holder and obtain
parental consent for minors under 16. While state officials argued the 
measure was necessary to protect children from online harm, the court found
the legislation to be "wildly underinclusive" and "vastly overinclusive,"
ultimately burdening the free speech rights of adults and minors alike. 

The ruling is a significant victory for privacy advocates who have long 
warned that mandatory ID checks create security vulnerabilities and comes 
only days after NetChoice scored a similar victory in Arkansas . 

In an era where data breaches are common, the requirement to upload
government-issued identification to access lawful content has driven many
security-conscious users to seek out the best VPN services to secure their
digital footprint better. That said, a VPN alone cannot bypass account-level
ID enforcement if it is tied to residency.

"ID checks outside the library"

Judge deGravelles did not mince words in his 94-page opinion . He criticized
the state's approach, stating that while the government has an interest in
protecting children, it does not possess a "free-floating power to restrict
the ideas to which children may be exposed." 

Drawing a powerful analogy, the court agreed with NetChoices argument that 
the First Amendment "forbids the government from posting ID-checks outside 
the library door," ruling that the same principle applies to social media. 

The judge also noted that the law was unconstitutionally vague in its
definition of what constitutes a "social media platform," leaving companies
guessing as to whether they were liable. By forcing all users to surrender
anonymity to access protected speech, the law would have chilled expression
and created significant privacy risks for Louisiana residents.

A growing legal trend

This decision is not an isolated event. It follows a clear pattern of federal
courts striking down similar state-level age verification mandates. 

Only last week, we reported on how a federal judge blocked Arkansas' social
media safety law , citing nearly identical First Amendment concerns. Like the
Louisiana case, the Arkansas ruling emphasized that the state cannot broadly
restrict access to information in the name of safety without proving that 
less restrictive alternatives, such as device-level parental controls, are
ineffective. 

Paul Taske, Co-Director of the NetChoice Litigation Center, celebrated the
Louisiana ruling in a statement. "Today, the First Amendment prevailed in
Louisiana," Taske said. "The government lacks authority to restrict access to
lawful speech it does not like."

What comes next? 

While the permanent injunction prevents the law from taking effect, the legal
battle may not be entirely over. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill
expressed disappointment with the ruling and indicated plans to appeal. 

"It's unfortunate that the court chose to protect huge corporations that
facilitate child exploitation over the legislative policy to require simple
age verification mechanisms," Murrill said in a statement . 

However, with legal precedents mounting in Ohio, Arkansas, California, and 
now Louisiana, the path forward for state-mandated age verification looks
increasingly difficult. For now, social media platforms operating in 
Louisiana will not be required to implement the ID checks, and users can
continue to access these services without handing over government
documentation. 

======================================================================
Link to news story:
https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-privacy-security/federal-judge-blocks-louisi
anas-social-media-age-verification-law-heres-why

$$
--- SBBSecho 3.28-Linux
 * Origin: Capitol City Online (1:2320/105)
SEEN-BY: 105/81 106/201 128/187 129/14 305 153/7715 154/110 218/700
SEEN-BY: 226/30 227/114 229/110 134 206 300 307 317 400 426 428 470
SEEN-BY: 229/664 700 705 266/512 291/111 320/219 322/757 342/200 396/45
SEEN-BY: 460/58 633/280 712/848 902/26 2320/0 105 304 3634/12 5075/35
PATH: 2320/105 229/426