Amended in Assembly June 18, 2013

Amended in Assembly June 10, 2013

Amended in Senate April 1, 2013

Senate BillNo. 568


Introduced by Senator Steinberg

February 22, 2013


An act to add Chapter 22.1 (commencing with Section 22580) to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to the Internet.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 568, as amended, Steinberg. Privacy: Internet: minors.

Existing law requires an operator of a commercial Web site or online service that collects personally identifiable information through the Internet about individual consumers residing in California who use or visit its commercial Web site or online service to make its privacy policy available to consumers, as specified.

Existing federal law requires an operator of an Internet Web site or online service directed to a child, as defined, or an operator of an Internet Web site or online service that has actual knowledge that it is collecting personal information from a child to provide notice of what information is being collected and how that information is being used, and to give the parents of the child the opportunity to refuse to permit the operator’s further collection of information from the child.

This bill would, on and after January 1, 2015, prohibit an operator of an Internet Web site, online service, online application, or mobile application, as specified, from marketing or advertisingbegin delete a product or serviceend deletebegin insert specified types of products or servicesend insert to abegin delete minor, as defined, if state or federal law expressly prohibits a minor from purchasing the product or serviceend deletebegin insert minorend insert. The bill would prohibit an operator from using, disclosing, or compiling, orbegin insert knowinglyend insert allowing a 3rd party tobegin delete knowinglyend delete use, disclose, or compile, the personal information of a minor for the purpose of marketing or advertisingbegin insert specified types ofend insert products or servicesbegin delete if state or federal law expressly prohibits a minor from purchasing the product or serviceend delete. The bill would also make this prohibition applicable to an advertising service that is notified by an operator of an Internet Web site, online service, online application, or mobile application that the site, service, or application is directed to a minor.

The bill would, on and after January 1, 2015, require the operator of an Internet Web site, online service, online application, or mobile application to permit a minor, who is a registered user of the operator’s Internet Web site, online service, online application, or mobile application, to remove, or to request and obtain removal of, content or information publicly posted on the operator’s Internet Web site, service, or application by the minor, unless the content or information was publicly posted by a 3rd party, any other provision of state or federal law requires the operator or 3rd party to maintain the content or information, or the operator anonymizes the content or information. The bill would require the operator to provide notice to a minor that the minor may remove the content or information, as specified.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

Chapter 22.1 (commencing with Section 22580)
2is added to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, to
3read:

4 

5Chapter  22.1. Privacy Rights for California Minors in
6the Digital World
7

 

8

22580.  

(a) An operator of an Internet Web site, online service,
9online application, or mobile application directed to minors or the
10operator of an Internet Web site, online service, online application,
11or mobile application that has actual knowledge that a minor is
12using its Internet Web site, online service, online application, or
13mobile application shall not do any of the following:

P3    1(1) Market or advertise a product or service on the Internet Web
2site, online service, online application, or mobile application
3directed to minors, or to a minor who the operator has actual
4knowledge is using its Internet Web site, online service, online
5application, or mobile application ifbegin delete state or federal law expressly
6prohibits a minor from purchasing the product or serviceend delete
begin insert the
7marketing or advertising is for a product described in subdivision
8(g)end insert
.

9(2) Use, disclose, compile, orbegin insert knowinglyend insert allow a third party to
10use, disclose, or compile, the personal information of a minor for
11the purpose of marketing or advertising products or services if
12begin delete state or federal law expressly prohibits a minor from purchasing
13the product or serviceend delete
begin insert the marketing or advertising is for a product
14described in subdivision (g)end insert
.

15(b) “Minor” means a natural person under 18 years of age who
16resides in the state.

begin insert

17(c) “Internet Web site, online service, online application, or
18mobile application directed to minors” mean an Internet Web site,
19online service, online application, or mobile application, or a
20portion thereof, that is created for the purpose of reaching an
21audience that is primarily comprised of minors. Provided, however,
22that an Internet Web site, online service, online application, or
23mobile application, or a portion thereof, shall not be deemed to
24be directed at minors solely because it refers or links to an Internet
25Web site, online service, online application, or mobile application
26directed to minors by using information location tools, including
27a directory, index, reference, pointer, or hypertext link.

end insert
begin insert

28(d) “Operator” means any person or entity that owns an Internet
29Web site, online service, online application, or mobile application.
30It does not include any third party that operates, hosts, or manages,
31but does not own, an Internet Web site, online service, online
32application, or mobile application on the owner’s behalf or
33processes information on the owner’s behalf.

end insert
begin delete

19 34(c)

end delete

35begin insert(e)end insert This section shall not be construed to require an operator of
36an Internet Web site, online service, online application, or mobile
37application to collect or retain age information about users.

begin delete

22 38(d)

end delete

39begin insert(f)end insert (1) With respect to marketing or advertising provided by an
40advertising service, the operator of an Internet Web site, online
P4    1service, online application, or mobile application directed to minors
2shall be deemed to be in compliance with subdivision (a) if the
3operator informs the advertising servicebegin insert, in the manner required
4by the advertising service,end insert
that the site, service, or application is
5directed to minors.

6(2) If an advertising service is notifiedbegin insert, in the manner required
7by the advertising service,end insert
that an Internet Web site, online service,
8online application, or mobile application is directed to minors
9pursuant to paragraph (1), the advertising service shall not market
10or advertise a product or service on the operator’s Internet Web
11site, online service, online application, or mobile application that
12state or federal law expressly prohibits a minor from purchasing.

begin insert

13(g) The marketing and advertising restrictions described in
14subdivision (a) shall apply to the following products and services
15as they are defined under state law:

end insert
begin insert

16(1) Alcoholic beverages.

end insert
begin insert

17(2) Firearms or handguns.

end insert
begin insert

18(3) Ammunition or reloaded ammunition.

end insert
begin insert

19(4) Handgun safety certificates.

end insert
begin insert

20(5) Aerosol container of paint that is capable of defacing
21property.

end insert
begin insert

22(6) Etching cream that is capable of defacing property.

end insert
begin insert

23(7) Any tobacco, cigarette, or cigarette papers, or blunts wraps,
24or any other preparation of tobacco, or any other instrument or
25paraphernalia that is designed for the smoking or ingestion of
26tobacco, products prepared from tobacco, or any controlled
27substance.

end insert
begin insert

28(8) BB device.

end insert
begin insert

29(9) Dangerous fireworks.

end insert
begin insert

30(10) Tanning in an ultraviolet tanning device.

end insert
begin insert

31(11) Dietary supplement products containing ephedrine group
32alkaloids.

end insert
begin insert

33(12) Tickets or shares in a lottery game.

end insert
begin insert

34(13) Salvia divinorum or Salvinorin A, or any substance or
35material containing Salvia divinorum or Salvinorin A.

end insert
begin insert

36(14) Body piercing.

end insert
begin insert

37(15) Body branding.

end insert
begin insert

38(16) Permanent tattoo.

end insert
begin insert

39(17) Drug paraphernalia.

end insert
begin insert

40(18) Electronic cigarette.

end insert
begin insert

P5    1(19) Harmful matter or obscene matter.

end insert
begin insert

2(20) Laser pointer.

end insert
begin insert

3(21) A less lethal weapon.

end insert
4

22581.  

(a) An operator of an Internet Web site, online service,
5online application, or mobile application directed to minors or an
6operator of an Internet Web site, online service, online application,
7or mobile application that has actual knowledge that a minor is
8using its Internet Web site, online service, online application, or
9mobile application shall do all of the following:

10(1) Permit a minor who is a registered user of the operator’s
11Internet Web site, online service, online application, or mobile
12application to remove, or to request and obtain removal of, content
13or information publicly posted on the operator’s Internet Web site,
14online service, online application, or mobile application by the
15user.

16(2) Provide notice to a minor who is a registered user of the
17operator’s Internet Web site, online service, online application, or
18 mobile application that the minor may remove, or request and
19obtain removal of, content or information publicly posted on the
20operator’s Internet Web site, online service, online application, or
21mobile application by the registered user.

22(3) Provide clear instructions to a minor who is a registered user
23of the operator’s Internet Web site, online service, online
24application, or mobile application on how the user may request
25and obtain the removal of content or information publicly posted
26on the operator’s Internet Web site, online service, online
27application, or mobile application.

28(4) Provide notice to a minor who is a registered user of the
29operator’s Internet Web site, online service, online application, or
30 mobile application that the removal described under subdivision
31(b) does not ensure complete or comprehensive removal of the
32content or information publicly posted on the operator’s Internet
33Web site, online service, online application, or mobile application
34by the registered user.

35(b) An operator or a third party is not required to erase or
36otherwise eliminate, or to enable erasure or elimination of, content
37or information in any of the following circumstances:

38(1) Any other provision of federal or state law requires the
39operator or third party to maintain the content or information.

P6    1(2) The content or information was publicly posted to the
2operator’s Internet Web site, online service, online application, or
3mobile application by a third party other than the minor, who is a
4registered user, including any content or information publicly
5posted by the registered user that was republished or reposted by
6the third party.

7(3) The operator anonymizes the content or information posted
8by the minor who is a registered user, so that the minor who is a
9registered user cannot be individually identified.

10(c) This section shall not be construed to limit the authority of
11a law enforcement agency to obtain any content or information
12from an operator as authorized by law or pursuant to an order of
13a court of competent jurisdiction.

14(d) An operator shall be deemed compliant with this section if:

15(1) It renders the content or information posted by the minor
16user no longer visible to other users of the service and the public
17even if the content or information remains on the operator’s servers
18in some form.

19(2) Despite making the original posting by the minor user
20invisible, it remains visible because a third party has copied the
21posting or reposted the content or information posted by the minor.

22(e) This section shall not be construed to require an operator or
23an Internet Web site, online service, online application, or mobile
24application to collect age information about users.

25(f) “Publicly posted” means content or information that can be
26accessed by a user in addition to the minor who posted the content
27or information, whether the user is a registered user or not, of the
28Internet Web site, online service, online application, or mobile
29application where the content or information is posted.

30

22582.  

This chapter shall become operative on January 1, 2015.



O

    96