Privacy & Information Security Law Blog

On September 10, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah issued an Order granting a Motion for a Preliminary Injunction, prohibiting the Utah Attorney General from implementing and enforcing the Utah Minor Protection in Social Media Act (the “Act”), which was set to take effect October 1, 2024.

Enacted in March 2024, the Act would require social media companies to implement age verification systems and parental controls on minor accounts. In its Motion for Preliminary Injunction, Plaintiff NetChoice, a national Internet trade association that includes big tech companies among its members, argued the Act violates the First Amendment. The Court found that NetChoice was substantially likely to succeed on this claim and granted the Motion. In doing so, the Court stated that it “recognizes the State’s earnest desire to protect young people from the novel challenges associated with social media use. But owing to the First Amendment’s paramount place in our democratic system, even well-intentioned legislation that regulates speech based on content must satisfy a tremendously high level of constitutional scrutiny. And on the record before the Court, Defendants have yet to show the Act does.” 

NetChoice previously obtained a similar injunction for Ohio’s Parental Notification by Social Media Operators Act.