Apple hits back at Texas online safety law: ‘Better proposals’

Apple has criticized a Texas bill mandating age verification for app store users, insisting that “better proposals” exist to protect children online.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed the bill into law on Tuesday, requiring Apple and Google to verify the ages of app store users and obtain parental consent for minors to download apps or make in-app purchases.

Why It Matters

Over 80 percent of Americans support parental consent for minors who want to create a social media account, according to a 2023 Pew Research poll, and more than 70 percent back age verification before use of social media.

In June 2024, Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy, who had regularly cautioned that excessive social media use among adolescents was linked to a higher risk of anxiety, depression, and body image issues, urged Congress to mandate warning labels on such platforms, alerting users to the potential mental health risks associated with them.

What To Know

Apple and Google, which own the two largest app stores in the U.S, had opposed the bill before it was signed, arguing that the law would require widespread data collection, even from Texans downloading non-sensitive apps that concern the weather or sports scores.

“If enacted, app marketplaces will be required to collect and keep sensitive personal identifying information for every Texan who wants to download an app, even if it’s an app that simply provides weather updates or sports scores,” Apple said in an official statement, according to Reuters.

Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, had argued that implementing age restrictions should occur at the app store level instead of in each app.

Apple and Alphabet, Google’s parent company, have recommended alternative solutions, such as providing age-range data only to apps that pose risks, rather than to every app accessed by a user.

Texas follows Utah, which passed a similar law earlier this year. At the federal level, the proposed Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) advanced in the U.S. Senate but has stalled in the House.

Florida has also taken action against large tech companies over children accessing their sites, with the state suing Snapchat for failing to prevent kids under 13 from accessing harmful content.

What People Are Saying

Apple said in a statement: “If enacted, app marketplaces will be required to collect and keep sensitive personal identifying information for every Texan who wants to download an app, even if it’s an app that simply provides weather updates or sports scores.”

In 2024, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said during a U.S. Senate hearing that parents should not “have to upload an ID or proof they are a parent in every single app that their children use. The easier place to do this is in the app stores themselves.”

Casey Stefanski, Executive Director, Digital Childhood Alliance, said: “The problem is that self-regulation in the digital marketplace has failed, where app stores have just prioritized the profit over safety and rights of children and families.”

What Happens Next

The Texas law will take effect on January 1, 2026. Another pending Texas bill would prohibit social media usage by anyone under 18, though it has not yet passed the state legislature.