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Committee adopts amendment and advances bill requiring social platforms to preserve decryption tools for investigations
Summary
CS for SB 868 was reported favorably after senators adopted a delete‑all amendment that requires social media companies to retain a mechanism to decrypt end‑to‑end messages for use in certain felony investigations and allows parental access during investigations; privacy advocates opposed the bill for weakening encryption.
The Senate Commerce and Tourism Committee voted to report favorably on CS for SB 868 after adopting a replacement amendment clarifying the bill’s scope on encryption and investigatory access.
Sponsor Senator Angolia told the committee the bill is intended to help law enforcement obtain evidence when online predators target minors and to prevent bad actors from exploiting ephemeral or disappearing messages. The adopted amendment requires social‑media companies to maintain a mechanism that allows decryption for use by law‑enforcement subpoena in felony investigations and permits a parent or legal guardian to access a minor’s messages during an investigation; it also prohibits disappearing message features for minors.
Opponents said weakening encryption or requiring “back doors” creates security risks. David McGarry of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance warned any backdoor or decryption mechanism “will be exploitable not only by the people for whom it is intended.” Privacy and civil‑liberties groups, students and education‑safety advocates testified against the measure, saying it risks minors’ safe spaces, weakens privacy and could be abused.
The committee adopted the amendment and reported the committee substitute favorably. The sponsor said stakeholders and law enforcement would continue to refine implementation details.
