Requests for comment/KOSA

The following request for comments is closed. closed this one because i don't think anybody really cares about metawiki; blackouts are a more enwiki thing imo -tynjee (PING ME WHEN REPLYING RAHHHHH) 13:20, 28 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

About KOSA

The "Kids Online Safety Act" (KOSA) is a bill introduced in the US Senate by Senators Richard Blumenthal (D‑CT) and Marsha Blackburn (R‑TN) in February 2022 and reintroduced in May 2023; the bill establishes guidelines meant to protect minors on covered platforms. Per Section 3.b of the proposed act, a "covered platform" (defined as "a commercial software application or electronic service that connects to the internet and that is used, or is reasonably likely to be used, by a minor.") has the ‘’’duty’’’ to block a minor's access to content that is deemed harmful to them.

This puts **every** Wikimedia project in danger of being censored by the U.S. government, because not only does it count as a “covered platform” (it is used by students under 16 for study and references), but it may either force the Wikimedia Foundation to ask users to provide personal information about themselves (particularly their age) when creating a new account, or remove encyclopaedic articles under the guise of “ensuring minor safety”. If passed, the KOSA act will put information on Wikimedia projects under scrutiny by the US government, and virtually eliminate the neutrality that has been part of them for years.

Not only does the act create an excuse for information censorship (about things that the US government doesn’t favour), but also the risk of a data leak. If someone has access to the age of every single Wikimedia user, then there’d be a very real possibility that they would be leaked to the public, including those of younger editors.

Therefore, wherever possible (such as enwiki), an anti-KOSA blackout should be done to stop the act from being passed. If an blackout can’t be enacted, a global banner which redirects it to a petition also against the act should be placed.

The responsibility of protecting a minor’s information online should be done by, and taught to, the minor’s parent, and not by the government.

Signed, -tynjee (talk) 03:47, 27 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not an adult and I'm not from US but i think you are very right. RuzDD (talk) 14:39, 27 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

If you’re going to make this work, you need to get enwiki involved first and foremost. Because not only does nobody outside Wikimedia know or care about metawiki, hardly anyone inside Wikimedia knows or cares about meta. A secondary issue is the fact that the Foundation’s legal brains don’t seem to be paying much attention to it, meaning that maybe people “above our (nonexistent) pay grade” don’t consider it much of a threat. Perhaps you should email them for better advice? Dronebogus (talk) 08:59, 28 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

@@Dronebogus: I understand but where and how do I get enwiki involved? -tynjee (talk) 12:14, 28 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Village pump is probably the best choice. I’d be careful and neutral about it since enwiki’s internal politics are notoriously conservative, pedantic, and not particularly friendly to newcomers. Basically expect at least some curt accusations of canvassing and “wrong forum” dismissals. In any case at least you’ll get someone to notice. Dronebogus (talk) 12:25, 28 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

@Dronebogus: i barely use enwiki so what section of the village pump tho? -tynjee (PING ME WHEN REPLYING RAHHHHH) 12:46, 28 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

@-tynjee: miscellaneous Dronebogus (talk) 12:58, 28 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]