The tech advocacy group NetChoice has filed a lawsuit against the state of Virginia, challenging a newly enacted law that limits minors’ social media usage to just one hour per day. The lawsuit, lodged on Monday, argues that this law infringes upon First Amendment rights by imposing “unlawful barriers” to how Virginians express themselves online.
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin signed the controversial bill (SB 854) into law in May, with plans for it to officially take effect on January 1, 2026. Under this legislation, social media platforms will be required to restrict users under the age of 16 to one hour of access each day unless explicit parental permission is granted.
NetChoice contends that this law not only curtails access to legal forms of expression but also requires social media companies to verify the ages of their users, which could lead to serious privacy and security concerns. The law mandates that platforms employ “commercially reasonable methods” for age verification, a stipulation that, according to NetChoice, could escalate into more invasive measures. Citing a tweet from Governor Youngkin, which emphasized that “platforms must verify age,” the organization raises the alarm about potential requirements for users to submit government IDs or other sensitive personal information.
The risks associated with such data collection are not hypothetical. Last month, Discord disclosed that a data breach related to age verification had potentially compromised the government IDs of approximately 70,000 users.
NetChoice, which counts tech behemoths like Meta, Google, Amazon, Reddit, and Discord among its supporters, argues that the law unjustly burdens minors’ rights to engage and interact with content online. “The First Amendment prohibits the government from imposing restrictions on accessing lawful and valuable speech, just as it wouldn’t dictate how long you can read a book, watch television, or enjoy a documentary,” explained Paul Taske, co-director of the NetChoice Litigation Center, in an interview with The Verge.
“Virginia must leave parenting decisions where they rightfully belong: with parents,” Taske asserted. “By overstepping its bounds, Virginia not only undermines its citizens’ rights to free speech but also heightens the risk of privacy and security breaches.”
