SB187 Alabama 2025 Session

Updated Feb 23, 2026

High Interest

Summary

Primary Sponsor: Clyde ChamblissSenator
Republican
Session: 2025 Regular Session
Title: Consumer protection, app store providers and developers required to take certain actions related to age verification and parental consent, Attorney General authorized to bring action for violations as deceptive trade practice, parents authorized to bring civil action
Summary: SB187 would require Alabama app stores and developers to verify user ages, link minor accounts to a parent account with parental consent, notify users of major changes, protect age data, and allow enforcement by the Attorney General for violations as deceptive trade practices.
What This Bill Does
App stores must verify ages, affiliate minor accounts with a parent account, and obtain verifiable parental consent before a minor can download, purchase, or make in-app purchases. They must notify users when an app makes a significant change, and for minor accounts, notify the parent and renew parental consent. Developers must verify ages and parental consent, notify stores of significant changes, and limit the use of age category data to enforce age restrictions and support safety and legal compliance. The Attorney General can sue for violations as deceptive trade practices, with penalties up to $50,000 per violation and potential punitive damages for patterns, with the act taking effect on October 1, 2026.

Who It Affects
Minors under 18 and their parents/guardians in Alabama, whose access to apps (download, purchase, in-app purchases) is conditioned on age verification, parent account affiliation, and verifiable parental consent.
App store providers and app developers, who must implement age verification, affiliate minor accounts to parent accounts, notify users of changes, protect age data, restrict data sharing, and comply with enforcement and reporting requirements.

Key Provisions
App store providers must verify user age at account creation and use commercially reasonable methods or a compliant age verification system.
Minor accounts must be affiliated with a parent account, and verifiable parental consent must be obtained before the minor downloads apps, purchases apps, or makes in-app purchases.
Providers must notify users of significant changes to apps; for minors, they must notify the affiliated parent and obtain renewed verifiable parental consent.
Developers must verify users' ages, notify app stores of significant changes, and limit the use of age category data to enforce age restrictions, protect safety features, or comply with laws.
App stores must provide developers with real-time access to age category data and the status of verifiable parental consent for minors, and notify developers when consent is revoked.
Personal age verification data must be protected by limiting collection/processing to verification, consent, and compliance records, and by using industry-standard encryption for transmission.
App stores and developers may not enforce contracts against minors without verified parental consent, misrepresent parental consent disclosures, or share age verification data beyond what laws or this act require.
Developers may request age verification data or parental consent only under specified conditions (e.g., limited frequency, reasonable suspicion, or at account creation), and must use the lowest appropriate age category for safety-related features.
The Attorney General will adopt rules to verify minor status, and violations can be pursued as deceptive trade practices with civil penalties up to $50,000 per violation and possible punitive damages for patterns.
The act becomes effective October 1, 2026.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.
Subjects: Consumer Protection