Assembly Bill A8624

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8624
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               May 22, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. CONRAD -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Science and Technology
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  general  business law, in relation to requiring
   social media networks to provide and maintain mechanisms for  deleting
   individual accounts on their platform

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
 394-cccc to read as follows:
   § 394-CCCC. SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS; ACCOUNT DELETION.  1.  AS  USED  IN
 THIS SECTION, "SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORK" MEANS ONLINE PLATFORMS OPERATED FOR
 COMMERCIAL  PURPOSES THAT ALLOW USERS TO CREATE, SHARE, AND VIEW CONTENT
 OR INTERACT SOCIALLY WITH  OTHER  USERS,  INCLUDING  THROUGH  MESSAGING,
 POSTING, COMMENTING, OR LIKING FEATURES.
   2.  A  SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORK THAT CONDUCTS BUSINESS IN THE STATE, SHALL
 PROVIDE AND MAINTAIN A CLEAR AND EASILY ACCESSIBLE MECHANISM  FOR  INDI-
 VIDUAL  USERS,  OR SUCH USERS' PARENTS OR GUARDIANS IF THE USER IS UNDER
 EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE, UNLESS  OTHERWISE  EMANCIPATED  OR  AS  OTHERWISE
 PROVIDED  BY  LAW,  TO DELETE SUCH USERS' ACCOUNTS AND THE PERSONAL DATA
 ASSOCIATED WITH THEM. SUCH MECHANISM  SHALL  BE  CLEARLY  ACCESSIBLE  TO
 USERS  OF  SUCH NETWORK, OR SUCH USERS' PARENTS OR GUARDIANS, AND EASILY
 ACCESSED FROM BOTH A SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS' APPLICATION AND WEBSITE, AND
 SHALL ALLOW THE SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORK TO PROVIDE A DIRECT RESPONSE TO ANY
 INDIVIDUAL, WITHIN FOURTEEN DAYS OF  THE  DELETION  REQUEST,  THAT  SUCH
 INDIVIDUAL'S ACCOUNT AND PERSONAL DATA HAS BEEN DELETED FROM SUCH SOCIAL
 MEDIA  NETWORK'S  APPLICATION  AND  WEBSITE.    FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS
 SUBDIVISION, "CLEAR AND EASILY ACCESSIBLE" SHALL MEAN THAT THE  DELETION
 MECHANISM  IS  NO  MORE  THAN  TWO  CLICKS  FROM THE USER'S MAIN ACCOUNT
 SETTINGS PAGE, IS WRITTEN IN PLAIN LANGUAGE, AND  IS  AVAILABLE  IN  ANY
 VERSION OF THE PLATFORM OFFERED TO USERS IN THE STATE.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11953-02-5
 A. 8624                             2
              

 
   3.  EACH  SOCIAL  MEDIA  NETWORK SHALL HAVE A CLEAR AND CONCISE POLICY
 READILY AVAILABLE AND ACCESSIBLE ON THEIR WEBSITE AND APPLICATION  WHICH
 INCLUDES  HOW  SUCH  SOCIAL  MEDIA  NETWORK  WILL DELETE INDIVIDUAL USER
 ACCOUNTS AND ALL ASSOCIATED PERSONAL DATA, INCLUDING CONTENT,  METADATA,
 AND USER ACTIVITY LOGS, TO THE EXTENT NOT LEGALLY REQUIRED TO RETAIN, ON
 THEIR PLATFORM.
   4.  NOTHING  IN  THIS SECTION SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO ADD TO OR INCREASE
 LIABILITY OF A SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORK FOR ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE  FAILURE
 TO  PROVIDE  A MECHANISM FOR A USER TO DELETE THEIR ACCOUNT AND PERSONAL
 DATA ON THEIR PLATFORM AND TO RECEIVE A CONFIRMATION OF SUCH DELETION.
   5. ANY SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM THAT KNOWINGLY FAILS TO COMPLY  WITH  THE
 REQUIREMENTS  OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE ASSESSED A CIVIL PENALTY FOR SUCH
 VIOLATION BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL NOT TO EXCEED ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS PER
 INDIVIDUAL AFFECTED, PER DAY OF NONCOMPLIANCE.   EACH DAY  SUCH  OFFENSE
 SHALL  CONTINUE  SHALL  CONSTITUTE  A  SEPARATE ADDITIONAL VIOLATION. IN
 DETERMINATION OF ANY SUCH  VIOLATION,  THE  ATTORNEY  GENERAL  SHALL  BE
 AUTHORIZED  TO TAKE PROOF AND MAKE A DETERMINATION OF THE RELEVANT FACTS
 AND TO ISSUE SUBPOENAS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE  CIVIL  PRACTICE  LAW  AND
 RULES.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it shall have become a law.