JACKSON, Miss. ( WJTV ) – Attorney General Lynn Fitch (R-Miss.) filed a brief in the Fifth Circuit of Appeals urging the court to vacate a preliminary injunction ruling that blocked a Mississippi law that requires age verification and other measures on certain websites.

House Bill 1126 , also known as the Walker Montgomery Protecting Children Online Act, would mandate digital service providers to require users to register their age. For those under 18, it would require minors to have parental permission before they could use their services.

The law defines digital services as a website, application, program or software that collects or processes personal identifying information with Internet connectivity. The law intends to limit children’s access to harmful material online and reduce the chance of harassment and exploitation.

“I will continue to fight for this commonsense law because our children’s mental health, physical security, and innocence should not take a back seat to Big Tech profits,” said Fitch. “These platforms pose a serious risk to our children and their futures depend on our willingness to protect them in this digital era.”

The bill is named for a Starkville teen, Walker Montgomery, who lost his life after becoming a victim of a social media sextortion scam.

NetChoice filed a lawsuit in early June to stop the bill from going into effect on July 1, 2024. NetChoice represents the interests of several companies that will likely be impacted by HB 1126. They include Meta Platforms, Google, Amazon and more.

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