"A new bill sponsored by Sen. Hawley (D-MO), Sen. Blumenthal (D-CT), Sen. Britt (R-AL), Sen. Warner (D-VA), and Sen. Murphy (D-CT) would require AI chatbots to verify all users' ages, prohibit minors from using AI tools, and implement steep criminal penalties for chatbots that promote or solicit certain harms. That might sound reasonable at first, but behind those talking points lies a sprawling surveillance and censorship regime that would reshape how people of all ages use the internet."
"The GUARD Act may look like a child-safety bill, but in practice it's an age-gating mandate that could be imposed on nearly every public-facing AI chatbot-from customer-service bots to search-engine assistants. The GUARD Act could force countless AI companies to collect sensitive identity data, chill online speech, and block teens from using the digital tools that they rely on every day."
The GUARD Act would require AI chatbots to verify every user's age, prohibit minors from accessing AI tools, and impose criminal penalties on chatbots that promote or solicit certain harms. The measure could extend age-gating to nearly every public-facing chatbot, including customer-service bots and search assistants. The bill could force companies to collect sensitive identity data, chill online speech, and block teenagers from essential digital tools. The bill provides no parental consent mechanism, no appeal process for age-estimation errors, and defines "companion" ambiguously, risking overbroad blocking. EFF cautions that age-verification laws threaten free expression, privacy, and competition.
Read at Electronic Frontier Foundation
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