EPIC Supports South Carolina Bills to Rein in Chatbot Harms

EPIC submitted testimony in support of two South Carolina bills that would place commonsense guardrails on chatbots. The bills were considered by a subcommittee of the South Carolina Senate Committee on Labor, Commerce, and Industry.

One of the bills, S. 896, is based on EPIC’s People-First Chatbot Bill. This bill would prevent chatbot companies from misusing and exploiting people’s personal data, require chatbots to present disclosures that they are not human and are not qualified to give professional advice, mandate safety testing and risk mitigation for chatbot companies, and establish a clear liability framework that allows companies to be held accountable if their chatbots harm people.

The other bill, S. 1037, would regulate manipulative design features and practices that chatbot companies use to draw users in and keep them using chatbots for as long as possible. It would require chatbot companies to use privacy-protective age assurance methods to ensure that minors are not able to access these manipulative features when using a chatbot.

Importantly, both bills contain a private right of action that would allow South Carolinians who are harmed by chatbots to hold companies accountable in court.

EPIC has long advocated for tech regulation that prioritizes people’s safety and privacy.