California will require operating system providers to implement age verification procedures for account setup under Assembly Bill No. 1043, signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in October. The law takes effect January 1, 2027.
The legislation mandates that operating system providers include an accessible interface during account setup requiring users to indicate their birth date, age, or both. This information must be available as a signal regarding the user’s age bracket to applications in covered application stores.
The bill does not require intensive verification methods such as face scans, but does mandate OS providers collect age information during account creation and share segmented versions of that data with outside developers upon request.
Windows users may see minimal impact, as Microsoft already requires date of birth entry during account setup. However, the requirement has sparked concern within Linux communities about implementation challenges.
“This is basically impossible for California to enforce,” said a user on the Linux Mint subreddit. “Even if Linux Mint decides to add some kind of age verification, to comply with CA law, there’s no reason anyone would choose that version.”
The California law reflects a broader trend toward mandatory age verification. The UK government’s implementation under the Online Safety Act has faced criticism over privacy concerns, while platforms like Discord have received similar critique for face-scanning verification efforts.
Industry observers note the enforcement challenges for the California-specific requirement, particularly regarding open-source operating systems where compliance mechanisms may be difficult to implement effectively.
