KIDS Act

Requires commercial websites where adult content makes up more than one-third of the material to verify user ages and block minors from accessing harmful sexual content, starting one year after enactment, while prohibiting platforms from requiring government-issued IDs or retaining verification data.

Requires covered social media platforms to establish and enforce reasonable policies to address severe harms to minors, including violence, sexual abuse and exploitation, the sale of illegal drugs, alcohol, or tobacco, gambling, and financial scams.

Requires covered social media platforms to turn on the most protective privacy and safety settings by default for minors, including limiting direct contact from unapproved users, hiding online status, restricting location tracking, and allowing users to opt out of personalized recommendation algorithms.

Requires covered social media platforms to provide parents with tools to view and control privacy settings for children under 13, monitor and restrict screen time, restrict purchases, and receive alerts about incoming message requests.

Prohibits covered social media platforms from facilitating advertisements for narcotic drugs, cannabis, tobacco products, gambling, or alcohol to users known to be minors.

Requires online video game platforms to set communication tools to the most restrictive level by default for minors, give parents controls over communication, and provide options to restrict playtime, in-game purchases, and profile recommendations.

Requires consumer artificial intelligence chatbot providers to clearly disclose to minors that the bot is an artificial intelligence system and immediately provide suicide crisis helpline resources whenever a user prompts the bot about suicide.

Expands federal online child privacy protections to cover teenagers ages 14 through 17 while raising the definition of a child from under 13 to under 14, requiring verifiable consent before collecting personal data from them.

Prohibits online platforms and apps from collecting, using, or disclosing the personal information of children and teenagers to deliver targeted, individualized advertisements.

Requires commercial data brokers that sell personal data of minors to register annually with the Federal Trade Commission, disclose their data practices and past breaches, pay an annual fee of at least $22,500, and be listed on a public registry.

Directs the Federal Trade Commission to consult with computer scientists, privacy experts, child safety advocates, and verification technology developers to establish age determination standards and metrics.

Requires the Government Accountability Office to report to Congress within three years on the effectiveness, compliance rates, privacy practices, and societal impacts of online age verification requirements.

Requires covered social media platforms to provide teenagers ages 13 through 16 with messaging controls to approve or deny message requests from new contacts, manage contact lists, disable messaging features, and hide their profiles.

Prohibits covered social media platforms from using deceptive visual designs or dark patterns intended to weaken, subvert, or confuse users about minor safety safeguards and parental controls.

Requires covered social media platforms to provide an easy reporting system for harms to minors and issue a substantive response within 10 days, or faster for imminent safety threats.

Requires covered social media platforms to provide clear, accessible notices explaining available safety safeguards and parental tools before a minor registers or makes a purchase.

Requires covered social media platforms to clearly label commercial endorsements and sponsored content shown to minors.

Requires covered social media platforms to undergo annual third-party safety audits, submit the findings to the Federal Trade Commission, and publish public summaries detailing minor usage and safety tool engagement.

Bans covered social media platforms from conducting market or product research on minors, unless solely required to improve platform safety and privacy or comply with the law.

Prohibits consumer artificial intelligence chatbot providers from falsely telling a minor user that the chatbot is a licensed professional.

Requires consumer chatbot providers to implement policies that advise minors to take a break after three hours of continuous use and prevent the promotion of sexual exploitation, drugs, alcohol, tobacco, or underage gambling.

Directs the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct a three-year study on how social media algorithms, data collection, and targeted advertising affect the mental health of minors.

Directs the Federal Trade Commission and the Food and Drug Administration to submit a report to Congress within one year on how minors access fentanyl through social media platforms.

Directs the Federal Trade Commission to evaluate tech industry online safety tools and educational efforts for minors and submit recommendations to Congress within three years.

Directs the National Institutes of Health to conduct a four-year longitudinal study evaluating the risks and benefits of consumer chatbots on youth mental health, including loneliness, depression, and self-harm.

Directs the Federal Trade Commission to launch a national public awareness and education program promoting online safety best practices for minors, parents, and schools.

Requires the Federal Trade Commission to create and publish public educational resources guiding parents, teachers, and minors on the safe and responsible use of chatbots.

Establishes the Kids Internet Safety Partnership within the Department of Commerce to coordinate with stakeholders, issue biennial reports on online risks and parental tools, and publish a best-practices guide for tech developers.

Prohibits online operators from retaining minors' personal data longer than necessary for a requested transaction or transferring it outside the United States without direct notice to parents or teens.

Requires online operators to give parents and teens the ability to review, correct, and delete personal information collected about them, and prohibits operators from terminating service solely because a user requested data deletion.

Permits online educational service providers to collect student data without direct parental consent if done solely for educational purposes under a written agreement with a school.

Requires the Federal Trade Commission to report to Congress on platform compliance with child privacy rules and publish annual accounting of all privacy investigations and enforcement actions.

Directs the Government Accountability Office to study the mental health and privacy risks associated with teenagers using financial technology and digital payment applications.

Empowers the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general to enforce compliance with the Act through civil lawsuits seeking injunctions, restitution, and monetary damages.

Establishes that federal standards preempt conflicting state laws while preserving state product liability, contract, and tort laws as well as state laws that offer greater protections to minors.