AB 1946

AB1946:v93#DOCUMENT

Bill Start

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 1946

An act to amend Sections 3273.65, 3273.66, 3273.67, and 3345.1 of the Civil Code, relating to social media platforms.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1946, as amended, Wicks. Reporting mechanism: child sexual abuse material.

Existing law requires a social media platform to take certain actions with respect to child sexual abuse material on the social media platform, including requiring the platform to provide, in a mechanism that is reasonably accessible to users, a means for a user who is a California resident to report material to the platform that the user reasonably believes meets certain criteria, including that the reported material is child sexual abuse material and that the reporting user is depicted in the material. Existing law also requires the social media platform to collect information reasonably sufficient to enable the platform to contact, as specified, a reporting user. Existing law defines child sexual abuse material for these purposes to include obscene matter that depicts a minor personally engaging in, or personally simulating, sexual conduct.

This bill would revise the definition of child sexual abuse material to instead include an intimate visual depiction, as defined, involving an identifiable individual who is, or reasonably appears to be, a minor. The bill would additionally require the above-described mechanism to be clear and conspicuous, as defined, and would delete the requirement that the reporting user be depicted in the material. The bill would require a social media platform to ensure that any report submitted using the reporting mechanism is reviewed through a hash-matching process and would require a social media company to ensure review by a natural person if there is not an established or known hash match to child sexual abuse material with respect to the reported material and the reported material is not otherwise blocked. The bill would require a social media platform to restore availability or functionality of the reporting mechanism if the reporting mechanism is unavailable or nonfunctional.

Existing law makes a noncomplying social media company liable to a reporting user for actual damages and statutory damages, as specified.

This bill would instead make a social media company liable to a depicted individual, as defined, for actual and statutory damages, as provided. The bill would also impose a civil penalty on a noncomplying company to be collected in a civil action by certain public attorneys, including the Attorney General.

Existing law establishes the Survivor Support Fund within the state treasury and makes moneys in the fund available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for grants by the California Victim Compensation Board to community-based organizations that provide direct services to vulnerable individuals in areas with a high concentration of sex trafficking.

This bill would require any penalty collected in a civil action by the Attorney General under these provisions to be deposited into the Survivor Support Fund.

Existing law prohibits a social media platform from knowingly facilitating, aiding, or abetting commercial sexual exploitation, as defined. Existing law deems a social media platform to have knowledge for the purposes of this prohibition if material was reported to the social media platform using the reporting mechanism for 4 consecutive months, as provided. Existing law exempts a social media platform from being deemed in violation of this prohibition if it instituted a specified audit program and provided to each member of its board of directors a true and correct copy of each audit, as prescribed.

This bill would remove the requirement that material was reported for 4 consecutive months to deem a social media platform to have knowledge for the purposes of the above-described prohibition. The bill would, in order to be exempt from that prohibition, require the social media platform to also submit the audit to the Attorney General, and if requested, to certain other public officials. The bill would provide that an audit submitted as described above is confidential and shall be exempt from disclosure under the California Public Records Act.

This bill would declare its provisions severable.

Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest.This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.The California Constitution requires local agencies, for the purpose of ensuring public access to the meetings of public bodies and the writings of public officials and agencies, to comply with a statutory enactment that amends or enacts laws relating to public records or open meetings and contains findings demonstrating that the enactment furthers the constitutional requirements relating to this purpose.This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 3273.65 of the Civil Code is amended to read:

3273.65.

As used in this title:

(a) “Block” means to remove from being publicly viewable on the social media platform.

(b) “Child pornography” has the same meaning as defined in Section 2256 of Title 18 of the United States Code, as amended from time to time.

(c) “Child sexual abuse material” means either of the following:

(1) Child pornography.

(2) An intimate visual depiction involving an identifiable individual who is, or reasonably appears to be, a minor.

(d) “Clear and conspicuous” has the same meaning as defined in Section 17601 of the Business and Professions Code.

(e) “Dark pattern” has the same meaning as defined in Section 1798.140.

(f) “Depicted individual” means a person who is depicted, including through the use of digitization or artificial intelligence, as a minor in child sexual abuse material on a social media platform.

(g) “Digital forgery” means an intimate visual depiction of an identifiable individual created through the use of software, machine learning, artificial intelligence, or any other computer-generated or technological means, including by adapting, modifying, manipulating, or altering an authentic visual depiction, that, when viewed as a whole by a reasonable person, is indistinguishable from an authentic visual depiction of the individual.

(h) “Hash” means a unique, fixed-length alphanumeric value generated from the contents of an image.

(i) “Hash-matching process” means a process by which images and videos of child sexual abuse material can be converted into hashes and used to identify known child sexual abuse material.

(j) “Identifiable individual” means an individual that meets both of the following criteria:

(1) The individual appears in whole or in part in an intimate visual depiction.

(2) The individual’s face, likeness, or other distinguishing characteristic, including a unique birthmark or other recognizable feature, is displayed in connection with that intimate visual depiction.

(k) “Intimate visual depiction” means a visual depiction that depicts, whether through a digital forgery or otherwise, any of the following:

(1) The uncovered genitals, pubic area, anus, or postpubescent female nipple of an identifiable individual.

(2) The display or transfer of bodily sexual fluids onto any part of the body of an identifiable individual or from the body of an identifiable individual.

(3) An identifiable individual engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

(l) “Minor” has the same meaning as defined in Section 2256 of Title 18 of the United States Code, as amended from time to time.

(m) “Obscene matter” has the same meaning as defined in Section 311 of the Penal Code.

(n) “Reporting user” means a natural person who reports material to a social media platform using the means provided by the social media platform pursuant to Section 3273.66.

(o) “Sexually explicit conduct” has the same meaning as defined in Section 2256 of Title 18 of the United States Code.

(p) (1) “Social media company” has, except as provided in paragraph (2), the same meaning as defined in Section 22675 of the Business and Professions Code.

(2) “Social media company” does not include a nonprofit organization exempt from federal income tax pursuant to Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

(q) (1) “Social media platform” has, except as provided in paragraph (2), the same meaning as defined in Section 22675 of the Business and Professions Code.

(2) “Social media platform” does not include either of the following:

(A) A stand-alone direct messaging service that provides end-to-end encrypted communication or the portion of a multiservice platform that uses end-to-end encrypted communication.

(B) An internet-based service or application owned or operated by a nonprofit organization exempt from federal income tax pursuant to Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

SEC. 2.

Section 3273.66 of the Civil Code is amended to read:

3273.66.

A social media platform shall do all of the following:

(a) Provide, in a clear and conspicuous mechanism that is reasonably accessible to users and does not use dark patterns, a means for a user who is a California resident to report material, including, but not limited to, material sent or received through direct messaging systems, to the social media platform that the user reasonably believes meets both of the following criteria:

(1) The reported material is child sexual abuse material.

(2) The reported material is displayed, stored, or hosted on the social media platform.

(b) (1) Collect information reasonably sufficient to enable the social media platform to contact, pursuant to subdivision (c), a reporting user.

(2) (A) Ensure that any report submitted using the mechanism required by subdivision (a) is reviewed through a hash-matching process.

(B) A social media platform shall ensure a report submitted using the mechanism required by subdivision (a) is reviewed by a natural person if both of the following are true:

(i) There is not an established or known hash match to child sexual abuse material with respect to the reported material.

(ii) The reported material is not otherwise blocked.

(c) Contact a reporting user in writing by a method chosen, not under the influence of dark patterns, by the reporting user, including, but not limited to, a telephone number for purposes of sending text messages or an email address.

(d) (1) Permanently block the instance of reported material from being viewable on the social media platform if the reported material meets all of the following criteria:

(A) There is a reasonable basis to believe that the reported material is child sexual abuse material.

(B) The reported material is displayed, stored, or hosted on the social media platform.

(C) (i) The report contains basic identifying information, such as an account identifier, sufficient to permit the social media platform to locate the reported material.

(ii) A social media platform shall not require a report to contain a specific piece of information for purposes of this subparagraph.

(2) A social media platform shall make reasonable efforts to remove and block other instances of the same reported material blocked pursuant to this subdivision from being viewable on the social media platform.

(e) Provide written confirmation to a reporting user that the social media platform received that person’s report that meets all of the following criteria:

(1) The written confirmation is provided to the reporting user within 36 hours of when the material was first reported.

(2) The written confirmation is provided using the information collected from the reporting user under subdivision (b).

(3) The written confirmation informs the reporting user of the schedule of regular written updates that the social media platform is required to make under subdivision (f).

(f) (1) Provide a written update to the reporting user as to the status of the social media platform’s handling of the reported material using the information collected from the reporting user under subdivision (b).

(2) The written update required by this subdivision shall be provided seven days after the date on which the written confirmation required under subdivision (e) was provided and every seven days thereafter until the final written determination required by subdivision (g) is provided.

(g) Issue a final written determination to the reporting user, using the information collected from the reporting user under subdivision (b), stating one of the following:

(1) The reported material has been determined to be child sexual abuse material that was displayed, stored, or hosted on the social media platform and has been blocked on the social media platform.

(2) The reported material has been determined not to be child sexual abuse material.

(3) The reported material has been determined not to be displayed, stored, or hosted on the social media platform.

(h) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), comply with subdivisions (c) to (g), inclusive, no later than 48 hours after the date on which material was first reported pursuant to this section.

(2) (A) If the social media platform cannot comply with subdivisions (c) to (g), inclusive, pursuant to paragraph (1), due to circumstances beyond the reasonable control of the social media platform, the social media platform shall comply with subdivisions (c) to (g), inclusive, no later than five days after the date on which material was first reported pursuant to this section.

(B) If this paragraph applies, the social media platform shall do both of the following:

(i) Promptly provide written notice of the delay, no later than 48 hours from the time the social media platform knew the delay was likely to occur, to the reporting user using the information collected from the reporting user under subdivision (b).

(ii) Comply with subdivisions (c) to (g), inclusive, no later than five days after the date on which the material was first reported pursuant to this section.

(i) Restore availability or functionality of the mechanism required by subdivision (a), if the mechanism is unavailable or nonfunctional.

SEC. 3.

Section 3273.67 of the Civil Code is amended to read:

3273.67.

(a) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), a social media company that fails to comply with Section 3273.66 shall be liable in a civil action brought by the Attorney General, a district attorney, a city attorney, or a county counsel for a civil penalty not to exceed two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) for each day that the reporting mechanism is in violation of Section 3273.66 and for reasonable attorney’s fees and costs.

(2) A social media company shall not be liable under this subdivision for the reporting mechanism being in violation of Section 3273.66 for any period with respect to which the social media company demonstrates, by clear and convincing evidence, that the reporting mechanism being in violation of Section 3273.66 was caused by circumstances beyond the social media company’s reasonable control and not due to any act or omission by the company, including a failure to implement or maintain adequate systems, processes, or safeguards.

(3) The penalties described in this subdivision shall continue to accrue daily until the social media company restores full functionality of the reporting mechanism in compliance with Section 3273.66.

(4) In addition to monetary penalties, the Attorney General, a district attorney, a city attorney, or a county counsel may seek injunctive relief to compel a social media company to immediately restore and maintain a fully functional reporting mechanism in compliance with Section 3273.66. The court may issue temporary, preliminary, or permanent injunctive relief as necessary to prevent ongoing violations.

(b) Subject to subdivision (c), a social media company that fails to comply with this title other than subdivision (a) of Section 3273.66 shall be liable to a reporting user who is the depicted individual for all of the following:

(1) Any actual damages sustained by the reporting user who is the depicted individual as a result of the violation.

(2) (A) (i) Subject to clauses (ii) and (iii), statutory damages of no more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) per violation.

(ii) If a social media platform has permanently blocked the instance of the reported material pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 3273.66 before a complaint is filed for a violation of this title, the maximum statutory damages awarded pursuant to clause (i) shall be one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars ($125,000) per violation.

(iii) If a social media platform meets all of the following requirements, the maximum statutory damages awarded pursuant to clause (i) for a violation of subdivisions (d) to (g), inclusive, of Section 3273.66 shall be seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000) per violation:

(I) The social media platform registers with, and participates in, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s Take It Down service or its successor.

(II) The social media platform receives updated hash values for identified child sexual abuse material from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s Take It Down service, or its successor, at least once every 36 hours.

(III) Within 36 hours of receiving updated hash values for identified child sexual abuse material from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s Take It Down service, or its successor, pursuant to subclause (II), the social media platform removes child sexual abuse material identified by hash values from the social media platform.

(IV) The social media platform reports identified child sexual abuse material to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s CyberTipline, as required by Section 2258A of Title 18 of the United States Code.

(V) The social media platform provides to a reporting user both of the following when a user reports child sexual abuse material to the platform directly:

(ia) Written confirmation to the reporting user that the social media platform received that person’s report within 36 hours after the child sexual abuse material was reported.

(ib) A final written determination to the reporting user within 30 days after the date on which the material was first reported.

(B) In determining the amount of statutory damages pursuant to this paragraph, a court shall consider the willfulness and severity of the violation and whether the social media platform has previously violated this title.

(3) Costs of the action, together with reasonable attorney’s fees, as determined by the court.

(4) Any other relief that the court deems proper.

(c) A depicted individual who is not a reporting user may bring a civil action to obtain relief pursuant to subdivision (b) for a violation of Section 3273.66 through an action filed on their own behalf or by a parent, legal guardian, or other authorized representative. In any action where damages are sought, the damages shall be awarded to the depicted individual.

(d) The failure of a social media company to comply with subdivisions (c) to (g), inclusive, of Section 3273.66 within 60 days after the date on which material was first reported pursuant to Section 3273.66 shall establish a rebuttable presumption that the social media company is liable for statutory damages under this section.

(e) Any penalty collected by the Attorney General pursuant to this section, less reasonable attorney’s fees and costs, shall be deposited into the Survivor Support Fund established pursuant to Section 647.5 of the Penal Code.

(f) This title shall not be construed to limit or impair in any way a cause of action under paragraph (1) of Section 1710.

SEC. 4.

Section 3345.1 of the Civil Code is amended to read:

3345.1.

(a) This section shall apply only in a civil action brought by, or on behalf of, or for the benefit of, a person who is a minor or nonminor dependent and is a victim of commercial sexual exploitation committed by a person who is over 18 years of age or facilitated, aided, or abetted by a social media platform in violation of subdivision (g). For purposes of this section, the age of the victim, the status of the victim as a minor or nonminor dependent, and the age of the defendant is determined at the time of the defendant’s act of commercial sexual exploitation of the victim.

(b) In a civil action brought by, on behalf of, or for the benefit of a minor, or nonminor dependent, against a person who engaged in any act of commercial sexual exploitation of a minor or nonminor dependent, whenever a trier of fact is authorized by a statute, other than subdivision (c), to impose either a fine, or a civil penalty or other penalty, or any other remedy the purpose or effect of which is to punish or deter, and the amount of the fine, penalty, or other remedy is subject to the trier of fact’s discretion, the trier of fact shall consider all of the following factors, in addition to other appropriate factors, in determining the amount of fine, civil penalty, or other penalty, or other remedy to impose. If the trier of fact makes an affirmative finding in regard to one or more of the following factors, it may impose a fine, civil penalty, or other penalty, or other remedy in an amount up to three times greater than authorized by the statute, or, if the statute does not authorize a specific amount, up to three times greater than the amount the trier of fact would impose in the absence of that affirmative finding:

(1) Whether the defendant’s conduct was directed to more than one minor or nonminor dependent.

(2) Whether one or more minors or nonminor dependents suffered substantial physical, emotional, or economic damage resulting from the defendant’s conduct.

(3) Whether the defendant knew or reasonably should have known that the victim was a minor or nonminor dependent. It shall not be a defense to imposition of fines, penalties, or other remedies pursuant to this paragraph that the defendant was unaware of the victim’s age or status as a nonminor dependent at the time of the act.

(c) If the trier of fact is not authorized by statute to impose a civil penalty in an action described in subdivision (b), the court may award a civil penalty not exceeding fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), and not less than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), for each act of commercial sexual exploitation committed by the defendant upon making an affirmative finding in regard to one or more of the factors set forth in paragraphs (1) to (3), inclusive, of subdivision (b). This penalty may be imposed in addition to any other remedy available in law or in equity.

(d) Any penalty imposed pursuant to this section shall be paid to the victim of the act of sexual exploitation.

(e) It shall not be a defense to the imposition of fines or penalties pursuant to this section that the victim consented to the act of commercial sexual exploitation.

(f) If the victim is under 18 years of age, the court, in its discretion, may order that any penalty imposed pursuant to this section be held in trust for the victim and used exclusively for the benefit and well-being of the victim. When the victim reaches 18 years of age or is emancipated, the trust shall expire and any unspent remainder shall be the sole property of the victim.

(g) (1) A social media platform shall not knowingly facilitate, aid, or abet commercial sexual exploitation.

(2) For a violation of this subdivision, a court shall award statutory damages not exceeding four million dollars ($4,000,000) and not less than one million dollars ($1,000,000) for each act of commercial sexual exploitation facilitated, aided, or abetted by the social media platform.

(3) A social media platform shall not be deemed to be in violation of this subdivision if it demonstrates all of the following:

(A) The social media platform instituted and maintained a program of at least biannual audits of its designs, algorithms, practices, affordances, and features to detect designs, algorithms, practices, affordances, or features that have the potential to cause or contribute to violations of this subdivision.

(B) The social media platform took action, within 30 days of the completion of an audit described in subparagraph (A), designed to mitigate or eliminate the reasonably foreseeable risk that a design, algorithm, practice, affordance, or feature violates, or contributes to a violation of, this subdivision.

(C) The social media platform provided to each member of the social media platform’s board of directors a true and correct copy of each audit within 90 days of the audit being completed accompanied by a description of any action taken pursuant to subparagraph (B).

(D) The social media platforms submitted the biannual audits to the Attorney General and, if requested, to a district attorney, city attorney, or county counsel. An audit submitted pursuant to this subparagraph shall be confidential and shall be exempt from disclosure under the California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code).

(4) Without in any way limiting the application of the term “knowingly” under paragraph (1), for purposes of this subdivision, a social media platform shall be deemed to have knowledge under paragraph (1) if all of the following are true:

(A) Material was reported to a social media platform using the mechanism required under subdivision (a) of Section 3273.66.

(B) The criteria set forth in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 3273.66 are established with respect to that reported material.

(C) The reported material was first displayed, stored, or hosted on the platform after January 1, 2025.

(5) As used in this subdivision, “facilitate, aid, or abet” means to deploy a system, design, feature, or affordance that is a substantial factor in causing minor users to be victims of commercial sexual exploitation.

(h) As used in this section:

(1) “Commercial sexual exploitation” means an act committed for the purpose of obtaining property, money, or anything else of value in exchange for, or as a result of, a sexual act of a minor or nonminor dependent, including, but not limited to, an act that would constitute a violation of any of the following:

(A) Sex trafficking of a minor in violation of subdivision (c) of Section 236.1 of the Penal Code.

(B) Pimping of a minor in violation of Section 266h of the Penal Code.

(C) Pandering of a minor in violation of subdivision (b) of Section 266i of the Penal Code.

(D) Procurement of a child under 16 years of age for lewd and lascivious acts in violation of Section 266j of the Penal Code.

(E) Solicitation of a child for a purpose that is either in violation of subparagraph (A) or pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 647 of the Penal Code.

(F) An act of sexual exploitation described in subdivision (c) or (d) of Section 11165.1 of the Penal Code.

(2) “Nonminor dependent” has the same meaning as in subdivision (v) of Section 11400 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

(3) (A) “Social media platform” has, except as provided in subparagraph (B), the same meaning as defined in Section 22675 of the Business and Professions Code.

(B) “Social media platform” does not include either of the following:

(i) A stand-alone direct messaging service that provides end-to-end encrypted communication or the portion of a multiservice platform that uses end-to-end encrypted communication.

(ii) An internet-based service or application owned or operated by a nonprofit organization exempt from federal income tax pursuant to Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

(i) A waiver of the provisions of this section is contrary to public policy and is void and unenforceable.

SEC. 5.

The provisions of this act are severable. If any provision of this act or its application is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.

SEC. 6. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 4 of this act, which amends Section 3345.1 of the Civil Code, imposes a limitation on the public’s right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that interest:In order to protect the confidential and proprietary information of an entity subject to Section 4 of this act, it is necessary that this act limit the public’s right of access to that information.

SEC. 7. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 4 of this act, which amends Section 3345.1 of the Civil Code, furthers, within the meaning of paragraph (7) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution, the purposes of that constitutional section as it relates to the right of public access to the meetings of local public bodies or the writings of local public officials and local agencies. Pursuant to paragraph (7) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution, the Legislature makes the following findings:In order to protect the confidential and proprietary information of an entity subject to Section 4 of this act, it is necessary that this act limit the public’s right of access to that information.