Prohibits interactive computer service providers from knowingly promoting content to a targeted user and with the intention of developing the content, cause the user extreme emotional harm, physical injury or financial injury.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1108
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 13, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. VANEL -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Consumer Affairs and Protection
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting
interactive computer service providers from knowingly developing or
promoting content that is dangerous or injurious
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
2 394-cccc to read as follows:
3 § 394-cccc. Interactive computer service; developing injurious
4 content. 1. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the
5 following meanings:
6 (a) "Interactive computer service" means a service provider, which,
7 for profit-making purposes operates an internet platform that is
8 designed to disseminate public content generated by a third-party;
9 (b) "Content" means the textual, visual or aural information that is
10 generated by a third-party or the interactive computer service provider;
11 (c) "Promote" means to present or otherwise convey third-party-gener-
12 ated or interactive computer service provider-generated content to a
13 target user;
14 (d) "User" means any person who is located in the state who utilizes
15 an interactive computer service provider's platform;
16 (e) "Platform" means an application or website developed by an inter-
17 active computer service provider that acts as an intermediary between
18 users and a third-party to disseminate content;
19 (f) "Target user" means a person who uses an interactive computer
20 service and whom the interactive computer service provider targets for
21 the purpose of sending a developed message; and
22 (g) "Target, targets, targeted, or targeting" means conveying content
23 to a target user solely on the basis of their personal data which
24 includes, but is not limited, to a target user's:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03781-01-3
A. 1108 2
1 (i) location data, whether general or precise, including: (A) the
2 time of day in the user's current or predicted future location; (B) the
3 weather in the user's current or predicted future location; (C) the
4 local businesses in the user's current or future predicted location; (D)
5 the natural, artificial, or planned events in the user's current or
6 future predicted location; (E) political preferences in the user's
7 current or future predicted location; and/or (F) landmarks in the user's
8 current or future predicted location;
9 (ii) income related activities, including the user's: (A) income
10 level; (B) profession; (C) employment status; (D) source of income;
11 and/or (E) investments;
12 (iii) relationship status, including whether the user is: (A) single;
13 (B) married; (C) divorced; (D) engaging in an affair; (E) in a domestic
14 partnership; (F) engaged; (G) in a romantic or intimate social relation-
15 ship; and/or (H) contemplating or is in the process of terminating a
16 relationship;
17 (iv) social status, including whether the user: (A) is a public offi-
18 cial; (B) is a public figure; (C) is a limited purpose public figure;
19 (D) is involuntarily thrust into the public domain; (E) receives a
20 significant amount of engagements on the interactive computer service
21 provider's platform; and/or (F) receives an insignificant amount of
22 engagements or is within a specific threshold of engagements on the
23 interactive computer service provider's platform;
24 (v) psychological profile, whether generated based on psychological
25 conditions set by the interactive computer service provider, or unique
26 or generally accepted psychological conditions;
27 (vi) veteran status, including whether the user: (A) has served in the
28 armed forces of the United States or another country; (B) is currently
29 serving in the armed forces of the United States or another country; (C)
30 has been discharged, whether honorably, for medical reasons or other-
31 wise; and/or (D) is not a veteran nor a member of the armed forces of
32 the United States or another country;
33 (vii) medical condition or status, including the user's: (A) mental
34 state; (B) physical state; (C) emotional state; and/or (D) frequency of
35 their receipt of medical care;
36 (viii) sex;
37 (ix) gender;
38 (x) national origin;
39 (xi) age;
40 (xii) race;
41 (xiii) religion; and/or
42 (ix) familial demographics, including: (A) whether the user is preg-
43 nant or expecting a child; (B) the demographic makeup of the user's
44 family; (C) the number of people in the user's family; (D) the emotional
45 relationship between family members; and/or (E) an immediate or distant
46 relative's social status, veteran status, medical status or psycholog-
47 ical profile, relationship status, income related activities, income
48 level, location data, age, sex, gender, race, national origin, religion,
49 or familial status as described in this paragraph;
50 (h) "Developed" or "Developing" shall mean:
51 (i) the interactive computer service provider generating or altering
52 visible portions of content or a group of content; or
53 (ii) the interactive computer service provider sufficiently altering
54 the meaning of content or a group of content generated by third parties
55 through the calculated targeting of the specific person such that a new
A. 1108 3
1 message is deemed to be created by the interactive computer service
2 provider.
3 2. An interactive computer service provider that conducts business in
4 this state shall not knowingly:
5 (a) promote any content to a targeted user; and
6 (b) with the intention of developing the content, cause: (i) extreme
7 emotional harm; (ii) physical injury, including self-inflicted injury or
8 injury resulting from addiction whereby the content being promoted
9 created the addiction or encouraged such user to indulge in their
10 addiction; (iii) financial injury, including self-inflicted financial
11 injury and financial injury resulting from addiction whereby the content
12 being promoted created the addiction or encouraged such user to indulge
13 in their addiction; or (iv) any other severe, cognizable injury that the
14 interactive computer service provider could reasonably foresee would
15 occur as a result of them promoting the developed message.
16 3. Any interactive computer service provider who willfully violates
17 any provision of this section shall be liable in a civil action to a
18 target user for any actual, physical or emotional harm incurred from
19 such violation and incur a civil penalty of up to ten thousand dollars
20 for each offense. In making a determination of any violation pursuant to
21 this section, the attorney general may take and make a determination on
22 the relevant facts, and issue subpoenas in accordance with the civil
23 practice law and rules.
24 4. Nothing in this section shall be construed as: (a) an obligation
25 imposed on an interactive computer service provider that adversely
26 affects the rights or freedoms of any persons including exercising the
27 right of free speech granted by the New York state constitution or the
28 United States Constitution; (b) creating any liability for an interac-
29 tive computer service provider for promoting content to non-target users
30 based solely on their location and/or time data; (c) creating any
31 liability for an interactive computer service provider for promoting
32 content that is not sufficiently developed to be deemed a violation of
33 the provisions of subdivision two of this section; or (d) creating any
34 liability for an interactive computer service provider for promoting
35 injurious developed content in another state.
36 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
37 it shall have become a law.
