SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — Gov. JB Pritzker signed a monumental bill into law Friday to set new restrictions on youth social media accounts and allow parents to have greater control over online actions.

The law bans social media companies from using addictive algorithms for youth, stops on-platform location sharing and prohibits scam financial transactions with strangers. It will also require an age verification process on devices to protect private data and avoid social media sites asking for IDs or facial recognition to confirm a child's age.

"Big tech companies understand and have confessed to how their algorithms can harm children, yet they refuse to take meaningful action on their own," Pritzker said. "So, we are going to start by requiring real change."

The legislation will block social media companies from sending notifications to children from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. unless they are direct messages from friends and loved ones.

Parents of minors 16 and older can override the privacy settings if they choose. The law also notes that a parent could override the privacy settings for a minor under 16 years old if they approve of the content. 

"We are raising the standard," said Sen. Willie Preston (D-Chicago). "We are closing the door, and we will do everything within our power to make sure that the predators do not have access to the children within the state of Illinois." 

House Bill 5511 passed unanimously out of both chambers during the final days of the spring session.

"For far too long we've let Big Tech go unchecked, and our children have been paying the price," said Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz (D-Glenview). "This legislation tells social media platforms to help fix an epidemic that they caused by designing addictive algorithms and putting revenue over the mental health and well-being of our kids."

These changes take effect Jan. 1, 2028. 

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