Update on KOSA

Governments around the world have sometimes introduced legislation that tries to regulate online platforms and limit access to "harmful" content, instead of regulating bad behavior itself. However, not all proposed internet legislation thoroughly considers the challenges of living in the digital age and the risks of government regulation.

We have covered some of these proposed laws in the past, and we're still keeping an eye on a number of proposals. You can follow the ones we're watching at Bad Internet Bills.

The most recent development in the US is that the US Senate passed the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), but the US House of Representatives is unlikely to take up the bill this year. This is good news for now, but fans should stay vigilant. There is no firm timeline for this particular bill to progress further, but it's still possible for KOSA or bills similar to it to be brought to a vote in the future. If you live in the United States, you can contact your local congressperson about your concern.

We have called on AO3 users to oppose KOSA and other bills like it in the past because these bills often have vague definitions of what's considered harmful to children, leaving it open for interpretation and abuse by various government entities or officials. Further, enforcement of bills like these hinges on age-verification technology. Such technology is currently unreliable and, even if it improves, will pose extreme privacy and security risks to users. In addition, these kinds of laws encourage affected sites and platforms to self-censor any information they believe governing bodies will consider inappropriate in order to avoid liability.

The OTW and AO3 would not be directly impacted by KOSA because we are a nonprofit and KOSA's current draft only applies to for-profit institutions. However, many other sites and platforms fans use regularly for their fannish activities would likely be affected. More generally, bills like these may have the inadvertent effect of exposing internet users to greater security risks. We will continue to highlight upcoming regulatory changes that may affect fans online and offline.

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The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, Transformative Works and Cultures, and OTW Legal Advocacy. We are a fan run, entirely donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.