Colorado legislators, candidates differ over social media regulations for minors

Following the 2020 accidental overdose of her daughter, Colorado’s Patti Lujan is still pursuing a lawsuit against Snapchat, the social media platform she claims connected her daughter with a drug dealer, police said. Lujan, like many parents, is looking for more social media protections for juveniles through increased regulation. Lujan’s “lawsuit alleges that Snapchat’s platform ‘purposefully obstructs parental supervision’ and ‘enables (drug) dealers to locate and access nearby minors and young adults,’” according to a news release. The mother believes that Snapchat protects drug dealers by not identifying and removing them from the app, and she called for protective measures to be put in place for minors, according to a Colorado Community Media story. All around the country, legislators are making efforts to put regulations and protections on social media platforms for minors. Concerned parents and legislators claim the platforms pose mental health and safety risks for developing youth. Just one Colorado bill relevant to youth on social media became law this year. SB26-011, “Search Warrants Provided to Covered Platforms,” requires that operators of covered platforms provide a system, such as a staffed hotline, for law enforcement to contact them with search warrants for user data at all times. A
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