California Proposes Exemption for Linux from Age Verification Law

California lawmakers are advancing an amendment to exempt open-source operating systems like Linux from age verification requirements imposed by the Digital Age Assurance Act (AB 1043). The amendment, AB 1856, aims to alleviate concerns from privacy advocates that the original law would force decentralized projects to collect user ages. The proposed change defines 'operating system provider' to exclude those distributing software under licenses that allow copying, redistribution, and modification. This exemption could protect major Linux distributions, although proprietary platforms like SteamOS may still need to comply. The amendment follows significant backlash against the original law, which aimed to implement age checks during device setup. The amendment was introduced on February 11, 2026, and the latest version was published on May 18, 2026. The law is set to take effect on January 1, 2027, pending the approval of the amendment.

Key Points: • California's AB 1856 aims to exempt open-source OS like Linux from age verification. • The original law, AB 1043, requires age checks during device setup, raising privacy concerns. • Proprietary platforms tied to app stores may still face compliance issues under the new amendment.