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'Eraser' Law Will Let California Kids Scrub Online Past

gregor-e writes "The first-of-its-kind 'eraser button' law, signed Monday by Governor Jerry Brown, will force social media titans such as Facebook, Twitter and Google let minors scrub their personal online history in the hopes that it might help them avoid personal and work-related problems. The law will take effect on January 1, 2015."

6 of 266 comments (clear)

  1. Great idea! Let's keep it going: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    A new California law will require local bars to eliminate any alcohol consumed by minors from their bodies on demand. Supporters say this new law will reduce the amount of drunk-driving and poor decisions made by drunk minors. It might help them avoid personal and work-related problems.

  2. Thin edge of the wedge! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If they let minors do this, why not everyone?

    1. Re:Thin edge of the wedge! by houstonbofh · · Score: 5, Insightful

      If they let minors do this, why not everyone?

      The better question is "How do you scrub something off the Internet?" Barbra Streisand wants to know...

  3. Re:How? by superwiz · · Score: 4, Insightful

    By the virtue of having jurisdiction over the land on which the server farms are located and the land on which most of these companies have their HQ's.

    --
    Any guest worker system is indistinguishable from indentured servitude.
  4. Re:Not as stupid as it sounds by houstonbofh · · Score: 4, Insightful

    If I'm Googling potential employees, I'm probably more interested in papers they published than a YouTube video of them drunkenly dancing on a table.

    And later you can answer all those people who ask how you could hire a teacher like that. A lot of companies are deathly afraid of a scandal, and it is easier to cut it off in the hiring process than to fire people later. (Which means you get sneaker scoundrels, which is what they want, I guess.)

  5. Re:Contest by vux984 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The following is why this law is bogus. [...] Historically, and continuing to the present the courts -- on up to the Supreme Court -- have ruled that when any kind of "transaction" is taking place, it takes place in the state of the place of business of the vendor

    Yes yes, all true.

    So if you have a website in Poughkeepsie, Gov. Jerry Brown has no legal authority to tell you what you can and cannot do with your website.

    Yes, but what if you are in California?

    Facebook Inc: 1601 Willow Rd Menlo Park, CA 94025
    Google Inc, Mountain View, CA
    Apple: 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA, 95014
    Twitter: 1355 Market St, San Francisco, CA, 94103
    MySpace: 349 - 8391 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90048

    I'm sensing a trend here.

    Microsoft: Ok... that one is based in Redmond, WA
    But they have offices:
    here: 100 - 300 Capitol Mall, Sacramento, CA, 95814
    here: 700 - 835 Market Street, San Franciso, CA, 94103
    and here: 1065 La Avenida, Mountain View, CA, 94043

    Care to explain again why this law is bogus?