February 18, 2026
Papers, please… for Weather
Arizona Bill Requires Age Verification for All Apps
Arizona wants ID for your phone’s weather app, calculator, even texts — commenters explode
TLDR: Arizona’s HB 2920 would force age checks for every phone app—even preinstalled ones—and require parental consent for minors at launch and after updates. Commenters torched it as invasive, hypocritical, and ripe for tracking, with a few proposing device-level parental controls and many betting courts will block it like Texas’s law.
Arizona’s new bill HB 2920 tries to slap an ID check on everything on your phone — not just downloads, but preinstalled stuff like your browser, text messages, search bar, calculator, even the weather. The state wants everyone sorted into four age buckets, and anyone under 18 tethered to a parent account. The kicker? If an app adds a banner ad or tweaks its privacy policy, the kid gets locked out again until Mom or Dad re-approves. App stores would collect and share age and family links with developers, with steep fines for mistakes.
The internet did a spit-take. One top comment called out Arizona’s contradictions: you don’t need ID to concealed carry, but “you need one for an app?” Privacy hawks warned this creates a “supercookie” — as birthdays reveal your exact age over time, turning into a tracking tag. Others snarked “Who do they think they are? The UK?” while one fed-up local just said the state “f***ing reeks.” Meanwhile, a lone policy wonk offered a calmer path: let device owners set strict parental controls instead of building a statewide surveillance machine. Memes flew: “Papers, please… to open Calculator,” and “Alexa, ask Mom for the weather.” With a similar Texas law already blocked by a judge, many predict this one gets dunked in court too.
Key Points
- •HB 2920 would require age verification for all mobile software in Arizona, including preinstalled apps like browsers and messaging.
- •App stores must verify users’ ages, assign them to one of four age categories, and share age data with developers.
- •Minors’ accounts must be affiliated with a parent account, and verifiable parental consent is required for downloads, purchases, and first use of preinstalled apps.
- •Renewed parental consent is required after any “significant change,” including privacy policy updates, data collection changes, age rating changes, in-app purchases, or ads.
- •The bill mandates extensive data collection with encryption requirements, imposes civil penalties up to $75,000 per violation, and allows private lawsuits; a similar Texas law was blocked by a federal judge.