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1. Embed this notice
   Christine Lemmer-Webber (cwebber@social.coop)'s status on Wednesday, 15-Apr-2026 20:47:35 JST Christine Lemmer-Webber

   Well this is truly bad. US national level OS-level age verification bill. https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/8250/all-info

   The text of it isn't out yet.

   • Rich Felker repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     Christine Lemmer-Webber (cwebber@social.coop)'s status on Wednesday, 15-Apr-2026 21:14:55 JST Christine Lemmer-Webber

     in reply to

     We don't know who's funding this stuff for sure, there was the vibecoded analysis that came to the conclusion of Meta, but I suspect that could be true but Meta wouldn't be alone.

     Who stands to benefit from this? A lot of forces of centralization, and anti-LGBTQ orgs:

     - Microsoft, for sure, since they are seeing Windows' dominance threatened?
     - Apple, for similar reasons?
     - Peter Theil and similar surveillance company owners and operators?
     - Anti-queer orgs and think tanks like the Heritage Foundation?
     - Cloudflare, who will probably run the age verification paywalls everyone will be forced to deploy?

     Who's behind this? Who's getting politicians so excited about it? There's such a swell of bipartisan support seemingly out of nowhere, and my suspicion is a lot of that enthusiasm is coming from check-writing.

     So who's behind it?

     Rich Felker and Miakoda repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     Christine Lemmer-Webber (cwebber@social.coop)'s status on Wednesday, 15-Apr-2026 21:22:20 JST Christine Lemmer-Webber

     in reply to

     If *I* were an investigative journalist, this is a piece I'd be pouring a lot of energy into. I know we have a few investigative journalists on here... maybe someone wants to take it up?

   • Embed this notice
     Gert V 🇵🇸 (gert@social.coop)'s status on Wednesday, 15-Apr-2026 21:44:32 JST Gert V 🇵🇸

     in reply to

     @cwebber Move fast, break things and f**k the public.

   • Embed this notice
     ra6bit (ra6bit@infosec.exchange)'s status on Thursday, 16-Apr-2026 00:59:49 JST ra6bit

     in reply to

     @cwebber Why do these bad ideas always seem to get trendy with law makers..

     Aral Balkan repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     Rich Felker (dalias@hachyderm.io)'s status on Thursday, 16-Apr-2026 00:59:49 JST Rich Felker

     in reply to

     • ra6bit

     @ra6bit @cwebber Because someone is spending astronomical amounts of money on making it trendy and lawmakers pretend like this is a completely fine and normal thing to do.

     Aral Balkan repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     Christine Lemmer-Webber (cwebber@social.coop)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 02:46:00 JST Christine Lemmer-Webber

     in reply to

     • Frederick

     @fooderick Hoo what a hell of a title

   • Embed this notice
     Frederick (fooderick@social.nerd.net)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 02:46:01 JST Frederick

     in reply to

     @cwebber The text of the bill is now live:
     https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/8250/text

     Note that it bears a different "display title" now: "Parents Decide Act"

   • Embed this notice
     Andres (andres4ny@social.ridetrans.it)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 03:01:52 JST Andres

     in reply to

     @cwebber Oh, you contributed code to an operating system that someone else used to ship a non-compliant device? Congrats, you're liable.

   • Embed this notice
     mcc (mcc@mastodon.social)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 03:12:47 JST mcc

     in reply to

     @cwebber it seems extremely obvious that established social media companies like Facebook would have a rational incentive to create market barriers to entry, such as draconian laws.

     but i would want to see evidence of that actually happening, and if someone admits to using LLMs then everything they say should be assumed to be statistical noise

   • Embed this notice
     Christine Lemmer-Webber (cwebber@social.coop)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 03:12:47 JST Christine Lemmer-Webber

     in reply to

     • mcc

     @mcc Yeah. I just haven't heard anyone else doing more investigative reporting on it. I'm hoping that someone will because it is desperately needed.

   • Embed this notice
     V (miss_rodent@girlcock.club)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 03:32:41 JST V

     in reply to

     • Andres

     @cwebber @Andres4NY Yuup, already contacted my representatives about it. Encouraging others to do the same.

   • Embed this notice
     Bill, organizer of stuff (wcbdata@vis.social)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 04:06:12 JST Bill, organizer of stuff

     in reply to

     @cwebber 404 has been doing some good work in the lead up. Let's hope it accelerates now that there's an actual bill & sponsors to pillory.

   • Embed this notice
     Kevin Karhan (kkarhan@jorts.horse)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 04:21:02 JST Kevin Karhan

     in reply to

     @cwebber You forgot #NSAbook / #StasiBook / #Facebook (I refuse to call it "#Meta!") who want to criminalize the #Fediverse and other decentralized competition!

     • Same goes for any other business that may get treatened by it!
       • EVERYONE needs to REFUSE TO COMPLY!

     https://jorts.horse/@kkarhan/116408665960000292
     I won't comply ( @OS1337 ) and I expect everyone else tovdo the same.

     • This is a watershed moment: If we don't stop this shite right here and now we'd be digging the graves we get shot and dumped in.
   • Embed this notice
     Christine Lemmer-Webber (cwebber@social.coop)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 06:30:10 JST Christine Lemmer-Webber

     in reply to

     • RRB

     @rrb wut

   • Embed this notice
     RRB (rrb@infosec.exchange)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 06:30:11 JST RRB

     in reply to

     @cwebber I guess there will be Linux versions hosted in the "free world." You will have to use a VPN to download the ISO and install it clandestinely. Tor and I2P in the distros. No AI spyware. May get people to drop Apple/MS systems.

     I see mainly upsides.

   • Embed this notice
     craignicol (craignicol@glasgow.social)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 12:29:27 JST craignicol

     in reply to

     • Aral Balkan
     • Rich Felker
     • ra6bit

     @dalias @aral @ra6bit @cwebber that someone could well be Zuckerberg (although I'm aware Thiel has plenty of ways to profit from it too)

     https://www.gadgetreview.com/reddit-user-uncovers-who-is-behind-metas-2b-lobbying-for-invasive-age-verification-tech

   • Embed this notice
     LisPi (lispi314@udongein.xyz)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 12:35:18 JST LisPi

     in reply to

     • Taggart :ifin:
     • Fluffy Kitty Cat
     @fluffykittycat @mttaggart @cwebber Unsurprisingly, abusers don't like it when they can't isolate their victims anymore.
   • Embed this notice
     Taggart :ifin: (mttaggart@infosec.exchange)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 12:35:20 JST Taggart :ifin:

     in reply to

     @cwebber FWIW, the California legislation was opposed by big tech's lobbying firms. IMO what we have here is a fundamental disconnect between technical people and non-technical people in understanding how to address a perceived issue (the internet is scary for kids). Polling consistently shows broad support for this issue, which is in part why this is a bipartisan bill.

     I'm not agreeing with it; I'm just saying the motivations might not be from Big Tech itself.

     Rich Felker repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     Fluffy Kitty Cat (fluffykittycat@furry.engineer)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 12:35:20 JST Fluffy Kitty Cat

     in reply to

     • Taggart :ifin:

     @mttaggart @cwebber the issue isn't "the internet is scary for kids" it's "kids having the internet is scary for people in power" it's threatening everything from their suppression of LGBT youth to their genocide in gaza

     Rich Felker repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     Daniel Lakeland (dlakelan@mastodon.sdf.org)'s status on Friday, 17-Apr-2026 18:04:18 JST Daniel Lakeland

     in reply to

     • Andres

     @cwebber @Andres4NY

     The US is a fascist dictatorship, but under normal situations, using a computer is clear and obvious speech, like using a printing press, and prior restraint on speech by first requiring age verification is bullshit according to lots of "settled" case law. Of course, none of that applies under a system where any old bullshit invented by Nazis goes through the SCOTUS with an express lane sticker.

   • Embed this notice
     Janneke (janneke@todon.nl)'s status on Friday, 24-Apr-2026 15:11:10 JST Janneke

     in reply to

     • Andres

     @cwebber @Andres4NY
     The Land of the Free is dead.

     Without much hope, wondering if anything or anyone from The Home of the Brave still exists to oppose and ignore/break an unjust law.