Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 509.053 · Subchapter B. DIGITAL SERVICE PROVIDER DUTIES AND PROHIBITIONS
DIGITAL SERVICE PROVIDER DUTY TO PREVENT HARM TO KNOWN MINORS.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
(a) In relation to a known minor's use of a digital service, a digital service provider shall develop and implement a strategy to prevent the known minor's exposure to harmful material and other content that promotes, glorifies, or facilitates:
(1) suicide, self-harm, or eating disorders;
(2) substance abuse;
(3) stalking, bullying, or harassment; or
(4) grooming, trafficking, child pornography, or other sexual exploitation or abuse.
(b) A strategy developed under Subsection (a):
(1) must include:
(A) creating and maintaining a comprehensive list of harmful material or other content described by Subsection (a) to block from display to a known minor;
(B) using filtering technology and other protocols to enforce the blocking of material or content on the list under Paragraph (A);
(C) using hash-sharing technology and other protocols to identify recurring harmful material or other content described by Subsection (a);
(D) creating and maintaining a database of keywords used for filter evasion, such as identifiable misspellings, hash-tags, or identifiable homoglyphs;
(E) performing standard human-performed monitoring reviews to ensure efficacy of filtering technology;
(F) making available to users a comprehensive description of the categories of harmful material or other content described by Subsection (a) that will be filtered; and
(G) except as provided by Section 509.058, making available the digital service provider's algorithm code to independent security researchers; and
(2) may include:
(A) engaging a third party to rigorously review the digital service provider's content filtering technology;
(B) participating in industry-specific partnerships to share best practices in preventing access to harmful material or other content described by Subsection (a); or
(C) conducting periodic independent audits to ensure:
(i) continued compliance with the digital service provider's strategy; and
(ii) efficacy of filtering technology and protocols used by the digital service provider.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 795 (H.B. 18), Sec. 2.01, eff. September 1, 2024.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/BC/htm/BC.509.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 99f2e2b0785bb37ec8980e57764bfe6c7932e61a75f46719ae89374b1ce85b29
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
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