On July 1, 2024, Illinois became the first state in the US to require compensation for children featured in their parents' monetized social media content. This amendment to the state's Child Labor Law tackles the growing concern of child exploitation in the age of so-called "sharenting," where parents document their children's lives online, typically for profit.
Witnessing the potential exploitation of children on social media through various cases of research, sixteen-year-old Shreya Nallamothu took action by contacting state legislators and bringing the issue to their attention. This sparked a movement driven by other young people who understand the long-term implications of online exposure, having grown up in the digital age.
