Meta, Google and TikTok are suing California Attorney General Rob Bonta in separate lawsuits over a new state law aimed at limiting potentially addictive social media features for those under 16. The companies say the law infringes on the rights to privacy and freedom of expression, as well as on their capacity to tailor their services to individual consumers, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom in September 2026, the legislation, known as Assembly Bill 1709 (AB 1709), is scheduled to take effect on 1 January 2027. It bans autoplaying videos and personalized content feeds for under-16s on social media. Violating the law could cost a company up to $50,000 for each affected minor. The law requires platforms to either disable the restricted features for users under 16 or delete their accounts.
All three tech firms say the legislation violates their First Amendment rights, arguing that AB 1709 would impact their ability to structure and suggest material. They also believe that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act shields platforms from some of the liability that users place on them.
The law would effectively force it to either overhaul its systems or delete its accounts for kids, or else be unable to offer personalized feeds and autoplay to minors, Meta said.
also criticized the law. A company representative said in a statement that AB 1709 is an illegal violation of free speech. The company said that curating content in a personalized way is a common feature of all digital platforms, television networks and streaming services.
The proposed restrictions have also drawn criticism from digital rights organisations. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) cautioned that there could be more information platforms that would have to gather information to verify their users’ ages in order to enforce the law.
The law could jeopardize online anonymity and leave teenagers and adults more vulnerable to surveillance, said Rindala Alajaji, Associate Director of State Affairs at EFF, to LA Times. She also shared that social media platforms have also become a significant venue for youth activism, for young people to be involved in movements like Greta Thunberg’s Climate Action movement and March for Our Lives.
According to Alajaji, restricting access to social media could prevent teenagers from accessing important information and participating in public discussions.
has also defended its current safety measures on YouTube. A company spokesman said autoplay is turned off by default when it comes to smaller accounts, and “parents can also limit their teenagers’ access to YouTube Shorts.”
argued that parents should have the authority to decide how their children use online platforms and warned that broad restrictions could interfere with existing parental control systems.
In the meantime, Bonta issued a statement saying the office was investigating the lawsuits and was ready to defend state laws that safeguard children online.
The case is pending as more and more countries begin to address adolescents’ social media use. Australia was the first to enact a ban for kids under 16 in December 2025, and France was also considering such a ban, but its highest court ruled against it in August 2026 due to concerns about free expression.
Meta is being sued separately in the United States for allegations of child safety. In August 2026, the company is set to pay $18 billion to settle a lawsuit filed by 29 US states.
