Nat Meysenberg
![](https://www.benton.org/sites/default/files/styles/thumbnail/public/new%20america.png?itok=_nsONaoH)
Age Verification: The Complicated Effort to Protect Youth Online
In 2023, more than 60 bills were introduced at the state and federal level requiring greater parental consent, age restrictions, or safety-by-design measures. Half as many bills have already been introduced in the first few months of 2024. Most of these laws target youth access to online adult content and sales that are age-gated in real life. Yet some states are going further to apply age verification requirements to social media, responding to growing concerns about children’s experiences online.