California Withdraws Proposal to Expand Age Verification Law

According to Rindala Alajaji’s report on EFF Deeplinks, the California legislature has significantly scaled back its plans to expand the state’s age verification laws. Language in bill A.B.1856, which posed serious threats to user speech, privacy, and security during browsing experiences, has been removed.

Background and Issues with the Bill

A.B.1856 was introduced by Democratic Assemblymember Buffy Wicks to amend A.B.1043, a law signed in 2025 and set to take effect in January 2027. A.B.1043 mandates all operating systems (OS) and app stores to collect users’ ages and categorize them by age groups. Furthermore, it requires systems to block younger users from accessing legally permissible speech and services based on age.

While A.B.1043 does not explicitly mandate remote age verification, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) pointed out that the legal liabilities imposed on OS and app stores effectively force the implementation of age verification systems. Under this law, OS providers face fines of up to $7,500 per affected child for violations. EFF argues that such risks will lead to increased ID verification, biometric scans, data collection, and potential data breaches.

Removed Clause Details

The original draft of A.B.1856 included provisions to expand this age verification framework to browsers and websites. Had this clause remained, all websites and online services would have been required to verify users’ ages before granting access to content.

The California legislature ultimately abandoned this expansion plan. EFF praised the judgment of the bill’s sponsors and committee staff for preventing the dangerous escalation of the law before its implementation.

Impact on the Open Source Community

Additionally, amendments to A.B.1856 excluded open-source operating systems from the law’s scope. This change reduces threats to the open-source community. Initially opposed to A.B.1856, EFF withdrew its opposition following these revisions.

However, EFF maintains that its stance reflects merely avoiding a worse option. The organization continues to argue that A.B.1043 itself poses risks to online anonymity, privacy, and security.

Global Trend in Age Verification Laws

California’s developments are part of a worldwide trend toward mandatory age verification laws. In the United Kingdom, the Online Safety Act is set for full implementation in 2025. In the U.S., states like Utah and Florida have passed age verification laws targeting social media platforms. In Japan, discussions continue around amending the Act on Development of an Environment that Provides Safe and Secure Internet Use for Young People (“Youth Internet Regulation Act”) to introduce age verification technologies.

EFF has taken a clear stance against this trend. The organization argues that “no one should have to provide or verify their age to access the internet,” warning that once collected, personal data is vulnerable to leaks, hacking, and misuse. EFF criticizes age verification systems as mechanisms that force users to share sensitive and immutable personal information, linking their offline identities to their online activities.

Editorial Opinion

In the short term, the California legislature’s removal of the dangerous expansion clause from A.B.1856 provides temporary relief for browser and website operators from mandatory age verification requirements. However, preparations for A.B.1043, scheduled for implementation in January 2027, remain necessary. OS providers and app store operators will likely be compelled to adopt age verification technologies to mitigate the risk of fines. As a result, there could be increased demand for privacy-protection technologies and anonymous browsing methods.

From a long-term perspective, the constitutionality of A.B.1043 will likely be decided through judicial review. EFF maintains that the law is unconstitutional, and litigation challenging it seems inevitable. Should the law be upheld, its influence could extend to other states, creating a risk of nationwide standardization of age verification laws. This could lead to a reimagining of internet architecture, where age verification becomes a fundamental prerequisite.

Our editorial team believes that the broader implications of age verification laws, particularly the extent to which they restrict adult privacy and freedom of expression under the guise of “protecting children,” have not been sufficiently debated. Critical evaluations of the implementation costs, error rates, and consequences for privacy remain glaringly absent from discussions surrounding such legislation.

References

• “California Steps Back From Dangerous Expansion of its Age-Gating Law”, by Rindala Alajaji — EFF Deeplinks, 2026-07-15T20:50:48.000Z (CC BY)
• Source URL: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/07/california-steps-back-dangerous-expansion-its-age-gating-law