Bluesky blocks Mississippi under new age verification law
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Summary
Social network Bluesky has blocked access to users in the state of Mississippi due to a controversial new law, HB1126, which requires social media sites to verify the age of users and obtain parental consent for those who are underage.
The block will remain in place until the law’s constitutionality is determined by the courts.
Bluesky claims the law would require the site to collect and store the sensitive information of all its users, and that building the infrastructure to comply with the law would be too great a burden on the small company.
The law is one of several that seek to introduce age-gating to social media; however, most have been blocked by the courts as likely being unconstitutional.
The US Supreme Court allowed HB1126 to come into force in August, even though a request for an emergency block on the law remained pending.