A Poor Case for Mandatory App Store Age Verification

Congress is currently considering legislation which would require operators of smartphone app stores (namely Apple for iOS and Google with Android) to verify the age of all users as a pre-condition of using any individual app. In other words, rather than have each alleged problematic app be responsible for verifying the age of their respective customers, this legislation would have the federal government shift the burden—and, by extension, the assumption of full liability for the actions of third parties over which they have no control—onto app stores. Given the free speech implications of such proposed legislation, an important question to ask is whether mandatory app store age verification can survive First Amendment scrutiny. In light of recent caselaw, this policy bulletin concludes the answer is “no.”