Connect x Protect believes young people deserve age-appropriate online spaces where they can connect safely while protecting their privacy. This campaign amplifies the voices of parents and kids to demand policymakers find solutions that protect kids online in a way that preserves privacy and makes the internet safer for everyone.
Protect Teens. Preserve Privacy.
Parents shouldn’t have to choose between online safety and privacy.
Kids deserve both.
- We advocate for a safer internet for kids — one where young people can benefit from the connected world without sacrificing their privacy or the security of their personal data.
- We push back on flawed policies that present a false choice between safety and privacy and rely on ineffective measures like age-verification checks that expose sensitive data and ignore the risks kids encounter on web browsers, consoles, and desktops.
- We believe that we can keep kids connected and protected — we educate and empower families by translating the complicated proposals before policymakers into clear, transparent guidance and advocate for better solutions that include privacy and security at their core.
- We seek a practical path — a safer digital ecosystem with shared responsibility and smarter solutions. Through research, collaboration, and clear communication, we help families and policymakers understand what effective online safety looks like — without sacrificing kidsʼ privacy, security, or well-being.
What We're Reading
- App Store Age Verification Law Back on in Texas, but More Challenges ComingA Texas law that puts age assurance requirements on app stores can stand – for now. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has sided with Attorney General Ken Paxton, pausing a 2025 federal district court injunction blocking Senate Bill 2420 until further legal notice.
- Appeals Court Pauses Injunction on Texas’ App Store Law that Likely Violates First AmendmentWashington – A federal court agreed with the Texas Attorney General’s request to temporarily lift a block of the state’s controversial App Store Accountability Act today, a decision that allows the law to take effect.
- Profiles in Courage: Kansas Rep. Rebecca Schmoe (R) and South Dakota Sen. Jim Mehlhaff (R)Across the country, Americans are increasingly wary of policies that promise safety but risk undermining constitutional rights, expanding surveillance, exposing sensitive data, or creating unintended consequences. Restoring trust between Americans and policymakers demands principled leadership and the willingness to stand apart when it matters most. In Kansas and South Dakota, two state lawmakers have done exactly that...
- Marchand: Illinois Online Age-Verification Bill ‘Poses Serious First Amendment Concerns’Ross Marchand, Executive Director of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance, said an Illinois proposal requiring age verification across internet-connected devices and websites threatens free speech and personal privacy.
Updates
- When Age Verification Goes WrongHow Some Bills Could Backfire for Real Families – Everyone agrees: kids and teens deserve safer online spaces. But some age verification proposals could create new risks while promising protection.
- Virtual Panel on Digital SafetyEpisode 1 (Digital Safety): Connect x Protect executive director Terry Samuel interviews Shane Tews of the American Enterprise Institute, Ben Gillenwater, The Family IT Guy and Dr. Joseph South, an education innovation specialist at the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) and former director of the Office of Educational Technology at the U.S. Department of Education.
- Connect x Protect Launches Campaign to Protect Kids and Teens Online In South CarolinaCampaign comprised of public, private and nonprofit sectors will educate on importance of kids safety and security across the country
The internet is where we live much of our lives.
For kids and teens, it is how they learn and grow, communicate and build community.They deserve an internet that is as safe as it is exciting.
