Indiana Minor Access and Use of Social Media (HEA 1408, HB 1408) ↗
Enrolled within an education-titled vehicle as House Enrolled Act 1408 (Pub. L. 100-2026) and signed by Governor Braun on 2026-03-04 after bipartisan passage (House 93-0; Senate 49-1 on Feb 27); the under-16 account restrictions take effect 2027-01-01. No known court challenge as of 2026-07-04. Follows Indiana's failed 2025 attempt (SB 11 died) and 2024 attempt (HB 1314).
The enrolled act's official short title is 'Education matters'; the minor social-media provisions (authored by Rep. Jake Teshka) rode in an education-titled vehicle after standalone social-media language stalled earlier in the session. Signing (2026-03-04, Pub. L. 100-2026), the 2027-01-01 effective date, the under-16 account gate (press also frames it as '15 and younger'), the age-determination-plus-Indiana-residency and ongoing age-estimation duties, the locked-settings list, and Attorney General enforcement under the Deceptive Consumer Sales Act are corroborated across reporting (ACLU-IN, Indiana Capital Chronicle, Indiana Senate Republicans, NewsNation/Fox59) plus the bill-status record (Bill Sponsor / IGA). Still pending a primary-text pass and omitted or marked unknown rather than guessed: the covered-provider definition and $1B-revenue / algorithmic-feed thresholds, exact IC section pins, penalty amounts specific to HEA 1408, and any private right of action. Status is `delayed` because the account restrictions are not operative until 2027-01-01. The IGA bill page is a JavaScript single-page app (a 2026-05-07 archive.org snapshot returns 200); the enrolled PDF on LegiScan/IGA returned 403 to automated fetches and was not re-read directly this pass.
Scope
The Act binds covered social-media providers, which must determine the age and Indiana residency of account applicants (with an ongoing age-estimation system that can trigger repeated checks) and obtain verifiable parental consent before an Indiana resident under 16 ('adolescent') may create an account.
- Reporting frames coverage on a platform with at least $1 billion in annual (global) revenue that uses algorithmically curated content feeds.(Revenue/algorithmic-feed thresholds from secondary reporting (NewsNation, ACLU-IN), primary-text pin pending)
- Reporting says the restrictions do not reach platforms whose primary purpose is direct messaging or email.(Exemption framing from secondary reporting (NewsNation), primary-text pin pending)
The covered-provider definition and the $1B-revenue / algorithmic-feed thresholds are drawn from corroborating reporting, not yet pinned to the enrolled text; the statutory definition and exact thresholds still need a primary-text pass.
Penalties
- Model
- Per violation
- Detail
- Violations are actionable as deceptive acts under Indiana's Deceptive Consumer Sales Act (IC 24-5-0.5) and enforced by the Attorney General; the DCSA authorizes civil penalties (e.g., up to $5,000 per knowing violation), but the specific penalty provision applied to HEA 1408 is pending a primary-text pass.
- Enforcer
- Indiana Attorney General
- Private right of action
- Unverified; treated as unknown, not assumed absent
Key dates
- Signed
- 2026-03-04
- Effective
- 2027-01-01
Obligations (4)
Determine the age and Indiana residency of each person seeking to create an account, and run an ongoing age-estimation process that can re-check a user based on usage over time.
Statute’s own ages: Account restrictions key on Indiana residents under 16 ('adolescent')
Obtain verifiable parental consent before an Indiana resident under 16 may create an account; if a platform later determines an under-16 Indiana account holder lacks consent, notify the user and terminate the account unless the determination is timely disputed.
Statute’s own ages: Adolescent = Indiana resident under 16
Apply locked default safety settings to minor accounts, restricting direct messages and search visibility.
Statute’s own ages: Applies to accounts held by Indiana residents under 16
Disable algorithmic recommendations, behavior-based advertising, and addictive features on minor accounts.
Statute’s own ages: Applies to accounts held by Indiana residents under 16
Cross-state comparisons
- similarid-hb542 (Idaho): Both condition an under-16 minor's social-media account on age verification/estimation plus verifiable parental consent and both lock down algorithmic recommendations, behavior-based advertising, and addictive features for covered minors.
- similarga-sb351 (Georgia): Both are social-media parental-consent laws keyed to under-16 account holders; Georgia's SB 351 was preliminarily enjoined on First Amendment grounds, a posture Indiana's HEA 1408 has not (yet) drawn.
- similarny-safe-for-kids (New York): Both restrict algorithmic/addictive features for known minors, but Indiana pairs that with a hard age-verification-plus-parental-consent account gate for under-16 users.