Every parent in Texas knows the internet can be a minefield for children. Harmful online content is often just a click away, and social media companies have created an environment where dangerous materials, addictive algorithms, and data-harvesting practices target kids from a young age. Parents are right to be deeply concerned.
Just look at what Facebook has done to develop its AI. A new report found that Mark Zuckerberg’s company isn’t just being trained on news articles or research links. For years, Facebook has fed explicit pornographic content into its products that the company is currently pushing to kids. That’s enough to make anyone queasy. On top of that, a whistleblower recently exposed that Facebook knows its products are hurting children and that its own internal data proves it. The company just doesn’t want to do anything about it.
That’s why officials here in Texas are taking action. Attorney General Ken Paxton recently launched an investigation into Facebook for deliberately targeting children with deceptive advertisements to get them to use their AI chatbots. Paxton’s actions are a real move toward real accountability for a company knowingly harming our children.
The Texas State Legislature has also moved forward with solutions, attempting to protect kids online. Earlier this year, Governor Greg Abbott signed SB2420 into law. As designed, it mandates app stores to verify users’ identities and ages when they download a new app, a good first step for kids’ online safety. However, Facebook’s continued harmful actions since Governor Abbott signed SB2420 demonstrate that there’s more work for our lawmakers to do to hold the real bad actors accountable.
The law currently allows minors to bypass age verification safeguards by logging into social media platforms through a desktop, laptop, or gaming console. That means Facebook can continue serving pornographic-trained content and other inappropriate materials to children who access their chatbots through a web browser. Addressing this issue is necessary to effectively protect children from harmful social media platforms.
Additionally, children face far more dangerous realities once they’ve downloaded an app or accessed a site. For example, the same Facebook chatbot that exposed kids to pornographic material was actively marketed to them. The company also suppressed internal research showing its virtual reality products harmed children, tools that are primarily used by young users. Even when kids make it past the so-called “age gates,” they are still bombarded with disturbing content, addictive features, and algorithmic recommendations within the apps and platforms deliberately designed to keep them hooked.
So while there are now laws on the books intending to tackle online safety, the Texas Legislature can and should go further. Other solutions exist that would force platforms to create a safer environment for their users. In Congress, for example, officials are considering bills like the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), which would tackle the problem at its source by requiring platforms to design their products with child safety in mind.
To have a safe and secure internet, we need to hold social media companies accountable for the harmful content and addictive design features inside their products. This isn’t just about keeping kids off of harmful platforms it’s about making the online spaces where they do spend time safer.
Brandon Hall is a Republican member of the State Board of Education. Brandon resides in Parker County with his wife Ashley where he pastors a local church in Springtown. Seven Generations of Brandon’s family have called North Texas home.