EARN IT Act of 2023

Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies Act of 2023 or the EARN IT Act of 2023

This bill revises the federal framework governing the prevention of online sexual exploitation of children.

The bill limits the liability protections of interactive computer service providers (e.g., Facebook and Twitter) with respect to claims alleging violations of child sexual exploitation laws.

Additionally, the bill replaces various statutory references to child pornography and material that contains child pornography with child sexual abuse material.

Finally, the bill makes changes to the reporting requirements for electronic communication service providers and remote computing service providers (providers) who report apparent instances of crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Among the changes, the bill requires providers to report facts and circumstances sufficient to identify and locate each minor and each involved individual. The bill also increases the amount of time that providers must preserve the contents of a report.

The EARN IT Act of 2023, also known as Bill 118 hr 2732, is a piece of legislation introduced in the US Congress aimed at combating online child exploitation and abuse. The bill seeks to establish a National Commission on Online Child Exploitation Prevention, which would be responsible for developing best practices for online platforms to prevent the spread of child sexual abuse material.

Under the EARN IT Act, online platforms would be required to adhere to these best practices in order to receive liability protection for user-generated content related to child exploitation. This means that platforms would need to take proactive measures to detect and remove illegal content, as well as report any instances of child exploitation to law enforcement.

Critics of the bill argue that it could potentially undermine encryption and privacy protections online, as well as limit free speech. However, supporters believe that the EARN IT Act is necessary to hold online platforms accountable for facilitating the spread of child sexual abuse material. Overall, the EARN IT Act of 2023 aims to strike a balance between protecting children from online exploitation and preserving the rights and freedoms of internet users. It is currently being debated in Congress, with stakeholders on both sides of the issue advocating for their respective positions.