To support research about the impact of digital communication platforms on society by providing privacy-protected, secure pathways for independent research on data held by large internet companies.
About This Bill
Committee
Latest Action · June 8, 2023
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
The Platform Accountability and Transparency Act would establish a federal research program allowing qualified researchers to access data from large social media platforms for independent studies. The bill requires the National Science Foundation and Federal Trade Commission to approve research projects, define what data companies must share, and establish privacy safeguards that both platforms and researchers must follow. The law targets platforms with at least 50 million monthly U.S. users and excludes sensitive data like private messages and precise location information. Additionally, the bill creates new transparency requirements for platforms to publicly disclose information about advertising, content moderation, algorithms, and highly-shared content, though companies cannot reveal trade secrets or personal user information. The legislation authorizes funding for implementation starting in fiscal year 2024 and requires annual reports to Congress on the program's progress.
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