The House of Representatives in the United States passes online security legislation, senators seek more protective measures.

On Monday local time, the House of Representatives passed legislation requiring new online safety measures to be provided for children. This move indicates that Washington is increasingly paying attention to the issues of concern to American parents, but the bill has also sparked disagreements with senators seeking stronger protections. The bill passed by the House did not incorporate the Senate's request to impose legal obligations on technology companies like Meta Platforms Inc., Snap Inc., etc., requiring them to "take reasonable precautions" to prevent harm to minors. Last week, both Republican and Democratic senators criticized the House proposal for not going far enough. The so-called "Children's Online Safety Act" passed the House with 267 votes in favor and 117 votes against, requiring online platforms to restrict minors' access to pornographic content, including enforcing mandatory age verification on porn sites and providing parental control features on social media and online video gaming platforms. In addition, artificial intelligence chatbots must disclose their non-human identity to users who self-report as minors and provide suicide prevention resources to children showing suicidal tendencies.