SCOPE Act

SCOPE Act
Texas Legislature
  • an act relating to the protection of minors from harmful, deceptive, or unfair trade practices in connection with the use of certain digital services and electronic devices, including the use and transfer of electronic devices to students by a public school.
Territorial extentState of Texas
Enacted bySeptember 1, 2024
EnactedJune 13, 2023
Legislative history
IntroducedFebruary 16, 2023
First readingMay 4, 2023
Second readingMay 23, 2023
Third readingMay 23, 2023
Status: Not fully in force

HB 18 also known as Securing Children Online Through Parental Empowerment Act or just The SCOPE Act is an American law in Texas. The law requires internet platforms to verify the age of a parent or guardian of accounts if they are signed in as under 18. It also requires parental consent before collecting the data on minors under 18 years of age, which is an increase from the age set at the federal level under COPPA of 13. It also requires platforms to block and filter if the content promotes suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, substance abuse, stalking, bullying, or harassment, or grooming.

Lawsuit against the act

CCIA & NetChoice v. Paxton

On July 30, 2024, The trade associations The Computer and Communications Industry Association and NetChoice filed a lawsuit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to the to block enforcement of the law to The Western District Court of Texas. Judge Robert Pitman on August 30, 2024, blocked the block and filtering content requirements of the law as it violated the platforms' immunity to such user content under Section 230 of federal law. However, let the rest of the law take effect as the Plaintiffs did not show evidence that the other parts of the law were unconstitutional. The Fifth Circuit upheld the injunction in July 2026 on a 2-1 split decision.

Students Engaged in Advancing Texas et al v. Paxton

On August 16, 2024, FIRE helped 4 plaintiffs to sue the Attorney General Ken Paxton, alleging that the law violated the first amendment.

Lawsuits enforcing the act

Texas v. TikTok

On October 3, 2024, Ken Paxton sued TikTok for violating The SCOPE Act demanding a trial and for penalties of up to 10,000 dollars per violation. TikTok denies that it violated the law.

Paxton v. Discord

Paxton sued Discord in May 2026 over its failure to prevent exposure of minors to sexual exploitation and extremist content, required by the unchallenged parts of the SCOPE Act. In July 2026, the judge issued an order that Discord had 90 days to implement the same protections for minors it had set up in the UK for Texas users.

References

  1. ↑ Texas Legislature Online - 88(R) History for HB 18
  2. ↑ Texas HB 18: Scope Act aims to protect teens from harmful content | khou.com
  3. ↑ Texas kids would need parental consent for social media under House bill | The Texas Tribune
  4. ↑ 88(R) HB 18 - Enrolled version (texas.gov)
  5. ↑ ABC SCOPE Act in effect
  6. ↑ HB-18-Complaint_As-Filed.pdf (netchoice.org)
  7. ↑ NetChoice Lawsuit KXAN News
  8. ↑ Texas’ social media parental controls law partly blocked | The Texas Tribune
  9. ↑ 2024-08-30-Order-Granting-In-dckt-25_0.pdf (netchoice.org)
  10. ↑ Stemple, Jonathan (July 24, 2026). "US appeals court blocks part of Texas children's online safety law". Reuters. Retrieved July 25, 2026.
  11. ↑ FIRE Sues Ken Paxton, Alleging New 'SCOPE Act' Violates Constitutional Rights, Commerce Clause | Civil Society | The Texan
  12. ↑ Students Engaged in Advancing Texas et al v. Paxton
  13. ↑ TikTok Original Petition Filestamped.pdf (texasattorneygeneral.gov)
  14. ↑ Texas sues TikTok over handling of minors' data (thehill.com)
  15. ↑ Texas sues TikTok for violating children's privacy | Reuters
  16. ↑ Ken Paxton sues TikTok for disclosing Texas minors’ data. | The Texas Tribune
  17. ↑ Cobler, Paul (May 25, 2026). "Texas sues Discord, arguing online messaging platform endangered children, misled users". KETK-TV. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  18. ↑ Mata, Paulina (July 24, 2026). "Discord ordered to protect children from online predators after Paxton secures temporary injunction". KETK-TV. Retrieved July 24, 2026.