1. United States
2. Mich.
3. Letter

I'm asking you to oppose mandatory age verification laws that are forcing millions of Americans to submit government IDs and biometric data just to access legal online content. These laws are dismantling the privacy protections that have made the internet a space for free expression and anonymous speech. The infrastructure being built right now creates concentrated databases of our most sensitive information held by a handful of private vendors for up to three years. Discord just disclosed a breach exposing 70,000 users' ID images through a compromised third-party service. This is exactly what privacy advocates warned would happen. These databases become irresistible targets for hackers and government surveillance, and terms of service already allow vendors to hand over our data when law enforcement asks. The solution isn't building new systems of surveillance and exclusion. We need comprehensive federal privacy laws that protect all internet users, not just children. Age verification laws create a patchwork of compliance requirements across states while fundamentally changing how Americans access information online. The internet's value lies in its openness and the ability to access information without constant identity checks. Protect online privacy by opposing these verification mandates and supporting real privacy legislation instead.