North Carolina Bill Would Require People to Share Their IDs With Social Media Companies

In North Carolina, legislators are considering a bill that would grant consumers more control over data collected and sold by companies. Great! Who can argue against that? But that’s not all it’s about. Following national trends, it would also set forth troubling age verification requirements for social media. Although pitched in a “save the kids” framing, these laws are likely to cause more harm than good. Last month, state senators Terry Brown (D) and Allen Chesser (R) introduced the NC Personal Data Privacy Act, which sets forth six consumer rights regarding personal data. Amongst them, people can request to see what information is being collected about them, correct inaccuracies, and opt out if companies are selling their data to third parties. Some information is exempt, like health information protected under HIPAA. In addition, companies don’t need to comply if doing so would reveal trade secrets. The bill seems to partially follow the Consumer Privacy Act of North Carolina, w ... Read full article.