Refuse surveillance and censorship, stop the SCREEN Act!
The SCREEN Act would instate nationwide age verification requirements for websites that lawmakers deem “harmful to minors.” Its broad scope could instate online ID checks on everything from actual adult websites to popular social media platforms, fanfiction sites, and even entire telecom networks. Far from promoting safety, it would force websites to contract with shady third-party verification companies to collect and store incredibly sensitive identifying info, like our drivers’ licenses and passports, in insecure databases. With backing from far-right politicians and conservative anti-porn groups, it’s clear what this bill is really intended to do: censor our access to the Internet while collecting our data in droves.
The SCREEN Act in context: another win for Trump’s censorship agenda
The SCREEN Act and other age verification bills like it didn’t come out of nowhere. They’ve been passed already in states like Kansas and South Dakota, where “acts of homosexuality” are now legally considered “harmful to minors” and eligible for censorship. The push to adopt online ID checks to “protect kids” is textbook right-wing censorship led by groups who consider queer and trans people a danger to children and a worthy target for surveillance and censorship. Enforcement of the SCREEN Act would fall to Trump’s FTC chair Andrew Ferguson, who conveniently promised to “fight back against the trans agenda” if nominated.
In a time of rising fascism when queer and trans people along with all marginalized groups face increasing repression, proponents of the SCREEN Act want to hand the Trump admin a blank check for even more censorship and surveillance. With broad definitions as to what constitutes a covered platform and content harmful to minors, the bill could be weaponized to censor anything from adult websites to fanfiction sites, popular social media platforms, and even entire telecommunication networks. We can’t let that happen.
Papers, please: the SCREEN Act wants your driver’s license, passport, or even your face.
Despite its attempts at data protection, the SCREEN Act mandates surveillance of extremely sensitive data that simply can’t be collected and stored without significant threats to our privacy and safety. Users attempting to access a censored platform would have their IP address tied to their identifying information, tracking their browsing history on government orders. Most sites would employ third-party age verification providers, which have been known to be hacked, exposing countless people’s personal data. Other companies use inaccurate and insecure methods like facial recognition, storing our faces and IDs in databases that are regularly accessed and abused by cops and federal agents. The only way to truly guarantee our data stays safe and secure is to avoid submitting it to big databases and tying it to our online activity, as would be required by the SCREEN Act.