Ashley Johnson

In many regards, the proposed American Privacy Rights Act is a reasonable bipartisan compromise, though its draft language still has plenty of opportunities for fine-tuning and three provisions in particular that would have serious negative economic consequences if passed into law.

Recent history has demonstrated that any federal privacy bill faces an uphill battle toward becoming law. However, the vast similarities between the APRA and ADPPA are cause for cautious optimism.

In recent years, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has aggressively scrutinized the tech sector, going after virtual reality, artificial intelligence, online marketplaces, and Internet service providers. Now in its latest case against data brokers, the FTC and the courts could change the definition of privacy harms, unleashing a flood of litigation and potentially undermining the data economy.

Protecting children’s privacy online is an important goal, especially given the continued lack of comprehensive federal privacy regulation in the United States. With a few minor changes to proposed provisions, the FTC’s updates to the COPPA rule would improve protections for children while ensuring operators of online services do not face overly burdensome requirements.

Though Congress is finally making progress on federal children’s online safety legislation with the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0), they contain serious flaws that would threaten online free speech, privacy, and the digital economy.

In areas ranging from data privacy to content moderation, states are creating patchworks of regulation that confuse consumers, complicate compliance, and undermine the digital economy. It’s time for Congress to step in and establish a consistent national approach to digital policy.

Effective protection for children online requires a combination of parental responsibility, industry standards, and regulation, not blanket restrictions and bans.

Starting from a young age, people use websites to express themselves, connect with others, and learn about a world beyond what they experience in their everyday lives. California’s AADC would completely upend this bustling marketplace of ideas.

The Senate Committee on the Judiciary's most recent “Big Tech” hearing on online child sexual exploitation highlighted everything wrong with the current debate surrounding children’s online safety.

While there are real concerns associated with social media, especially as it relates to children and teens, policymakers will only create more problems by legislating out of fear and public pressure.

All in all, upholding HB 20 or SB 7072 as constitutional would be a travesty for the Internet and the hundreds of millions of Americans who use it every day. The Court should reverse the Fifth Circuit and affirm the Eleventh Circuit.

The landscape of state legislation addressing children’s online safety and privacy demonstrates not only the difficulty of regulating social media and other online services but also the need for a federal standard.

Join ITIF for an expert panel discussion exploring the intersection between digital policy issues and the First Amendment, the free speech implications of proposals to address online problems, and how lawmakers could address these problems without infringing on users' or companies' speech rights.

Watch now for a panel discussion on the facts of the case, the claims against Meta, and how this lawsuit fits into the broader discussion over content moderation, privacy, children’s safety, and the responsibilities of social media platforms.

Watch now for the panel dsicussion focusing on age verification technology for social media, AI age estimation, and current capabilities and limitations that policymakers should consider when crafting legislation designed to protect children.

Gillian Diebold and Ashley Johnson moderate discussions about AI and education and children’s privacy concerns with emerging technology at the Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) Annual Conference, hosted by BBB National Programs.

Ashley Johnson speaks at the Big Tech & Speech Summit, an exclusive forum addressing the red-hot controversies impacting Big Tech in Washington.

Ashley Johnson offers her perspective on the oral arguments in Gonzalez v. Google, the broader Section 230 reform debate, different legislative proposals for altering Section 230, and the implications of potential changes to Section 230.

Watch the discussion about the progress Congress has made in crafting bipartisan privacy legislation, the ADPPA’s current legislative status, and the remaining areas of debate regarding the legislation.

Join ITIF in-person for a discussion about what emerging technologies are on the horizon for law enforcement and how police departments can get the most out of these technologies while addressing some of the legitimate concerns.

View ITIF's panel discussion on whether and how the FTC or Congress should update COPPA to protect children’s privacy while increasing the quality and quantity of online services for children.

ITIF hosted a discussion on how Congress and social media platforms can balance free speech and harm reduction in the regulation and moderation of political speech online.

ITIF hosted an expert panel discussion on federal government web accessibility and policy proposals for agencies to improve their compliance.

ITIF hosted a discussion of these issues with leading experts on intermediary liability, free speech, and content moderation to discuss the current debate surrounding Section 230 and how the debate may unfold in the coming year.