Op-ed: Urging US Delegates to support App Store Accountability Act

Support for App Store Accountability Act
By Shelby Fisher-Salmon, Fairbanks, Alaska

I'm an Alaska Native mom raising my kid in rural Alaska, and I'll be honest: technology has been both a blessing and something that keeps me up at night.

Out here, smart phones aren't a luxury. They're how we stay connected to family spread across distances that would take hours to drive, if there were even roads. They're how kids access learning resources, how family reaches me in an emergency, how we navigate weather that many people can't quite picture. I'm grateful for that.

But I'm also watching an internet that changes faster than any parent can keep up with. Kids can download apps with a few taps. Apps with predators, bullying, explicit content, things designed to be addictive – and a parent might not find out until something's already happened. That feeling of being one step behind is real, and a lot of us are dealing with it alone.

That's why I think Congress needs to pass the App Store Accountability Act.

It's not complicated. The bill would require app stores to get parental approval before a minor can download an app, and it would let parents see age ratings before their kids get access. One place to make those decisions, instead of chasing down settings across dozens of apps and devices.

In rural communities, we don't always have access to the workshops and support services that families in bigger cities take for granted. A lot of us are handling online safety on our own while working, while doing subsistence, while caring for extended family. And our kids are online more than ever, because they kind of have to be. The internet connects us in ways that genuinely matter. I just want families to have real tools to navigate it safely. This bill makes sure parents are in the loop before children access apps that could hurt them.

Alaska Native families have always worked to protect our children while holding onto what matters: our values, our culture, our connections to each other. That hasn't changed. What's changed is the landscape we're protecting them in.

Congress has a chance right now to support parents in that work. I hope they take it. Our kids deserve technology that respects families – not technology designed to get around us.