1. United States
2. S.C.
3. Letter

I am asking you to vote No on the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) on the grounds that it will not make kids safe and will, instead, effectively usher government censorship into law. As written, this bill will likely lead to age verification. This hands more power, and private data, to third-party identity verification companies. The same kind of private data that we've seen tech companies abuse over and over, especially in the past 10 years. Even with the recent amendments to KOSA, the bill still requires all websites, apps, and online platforms to filter and block legal speech. That's why one of the fundamental reasons to vote NO this: KOSA is a censorship bill. It empowers state attorney generals, who are mostly elected politicians, to file lawsuits based on content they believe will be harmful to young people, based on their own judgment, which will almost always be based on politicized agendas. Making government officials the arbiters of what young people can see online is censorship. On top of this, the amendments that cover technical aspects of how websites and apps should adjust how they run don't address the core problems proponents of the bill claim to be solving with it. For example, the amendment mandating chronological feeds for social networks is a cosmetic change that appeals to misunderstandings of how misinformation spreads rather than creating a system to stop the spread of misinformation.. Much worse, the amendment on targeted ads takes a step in the right direction and seems, on the surface, to address a core issue of online safety. Yet in practice, this amendment isn't anywhere near sufficient. A true Online Safety Act would aim to protect all Internet users, minor and adult. It would work to curb and combat ALL targeted ads and data collection/selling. It would protect Americans of all ages by limiting the tracking companies could do and enact regulations that protect everyone's privacy. KOSA will not protect children, it will harm minors and adults while also allowing censorship. Voting No on this will protect legal free speech. Trash this bill and instead work to create one that addresses the issues of social networks at their core, which benefits everyone.