Online Safety Center Online Safety Laws in the U.S.

Georgia

Last updated May 16, 2024

Relevant Law

Protecting Georgia’s Children on Social Media Act,
SB 351, Sec. 3-1, GA Code §§39-6-1 et seq.

Effective date:
July 1, 2025

Age in Scope

Minor < 16

Companies in Scope

“Social media platform” means an online forum that allows an account holder to create a profile, upload posts, view and listen to posts, form mutual connections, and interact publicly and privately with other account holders and users.

Key Exceptions

Social media platform does not include (i) email, (ii) interactive gaming, virtual gaming, or an online service, website, or application that allows the creation and uploading of content for the purpose of interactive gaming, educational entertainment, or associated entertainment and communications related to that content; (iii) an online service that is used by or under the direction of an educational entity, including a learning management system… (+ long list of exceptions).

Age Verification Mechanism

Shall make commercially reasonable efforts to verify the age of account holders with a level of certainty appropriate to the risks that arise from the SMP’s information management practices or apply protections to all account holders.

Key Requirements

Express consent of parent for minor account holder via online form, toll-free number, video-conferencing call, check government-issued ID or payment card information, allowing parent to respond to an email and take additional steps to verify identify, or other commercially reasonable method
Prohibit the display of any advertising in the minor’s account
Upon request of parent, provide a list and description of features related to censoring or moderating content, including any feature that can be disabled or modified by an account holder

Enforcement & Penalties

Attorney General Enforcement
May seek damages for up to $2,500 for each violation
90-day cure period
No private right of action

Relevant Law

Protecting Georgia’s Children on Social Media Act,
SB 351, GA Code §39-6-1

Effective date:
July 1, 2025

Companies & Material in Scope

A commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally publishes or distributes material that is harmful to minors on a public website which contains a substantial portion (33.3%) of material that is harmful to minors.

‘Harmful to minors’ means any material that: is designed to appeal to, or is designed to pander to, prurient interest; or exploit, are devoted to, or principally consist of descriptions of actual, simulated, or animated displays or depictions of [listed examples] in a manner patently offensive; or the material taken as a whole lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.

Exclusions

Any news or public interest broadcast, public website video, report, or event; news-gathering organization; or cloud service providers and internet service providers.

Age Verification Mechanism

Reasonable age verification methods include:

The submission of a digitized identification card, including a digital copy of a driver’s license;
The submission of government-issued identification; or
Any commercially reasonable age verification method that meets or exceeds a NIST Identity Assurance Level 2 standard.

Other Notable Requirements

The commercial entity shall not retain any identifying information after access to the material has been granted.

Enforcement & Penalties

Attorney General enforcement: Subject to a fine of up to $10,000.00 for each violation, the amount of which shall be determined by the superior court in the county in which any affected minor resides.

Private rights of action: for individuals for damages (including court costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees as ordered by the court) resulting from:

A minor accessing material harmful to minors; or
Retaining the identifying information.

U.S. Online Safety Law Tracker

U.S. states are passing legislation to protect children’s online safety at a rapid pace, from novel legislation aimed at protecting minors on social media, gaming platforms and other online services, to providing teens additional consent rights and data protections, and protecting minors from harmful content. Below is a state-by-state law tracker to help businesses stay informed and navigate the evolving online safety legislative landscape. The tracker provides a bird’s-eye view of the various state online safety, privacy and harmful content laws that have passed, along with their effective dates, scope, key requirements, penalties and more. We will update the tracker periodically to reflect new legislation and key changes to existing laws.

Click on individual states to explore.

Last updated April 17, 2025

Information is only shown for states with defined laws to-date.

Please note that these laws are in flux and subject to change; additional details in the statutes, other sources of interpretation, and local laws in cities and counties may also apply.

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