A State Government Tried to Regulate Linux; It Went Exactly How You'd Expect.

California quietly passed a law that requires every operating system — including Linux, FreeBSD, and SteamOS — to implement mandatory age verification at account setup, with a real-time API that broadcasts your age bracket to every app that asks. The fines? Up to $7,500 per affected child per violation. For solo developers and open-source maintainers, that's not a slap on the wrist — that's a death sentence.

Assembly Bill 1043, the Digital Age Assurance Act, was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom on October 13, 2025 and goes into effect January 1, 2027. In this video we break down exactly what the law requires, why it's technically unenforceable on open-source platforms, what the privacy implications actually look like, and how the community is already responding — including one BSD project that literally banned California from its license.

Colorado is drafting an identical bill. Both parties voted for this unanimously. And Newsom himself admitted in his signing statement the law isn't finished. Welcome to tech policy in 2026.

AB 1043 Official Bill Text → leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1043 Lunduke Journal — California Law Breakdown → lunduke.substack.com/p/california-law-to-require-linux-windows Lunduke Journal — MidnightBSD Bans California → lunduke.locals.com/post/7724876/midnightbsd-responds-to-californias-age-verification-law-by-excluding-california PC Gamer — OS Age Verification Coverage → pcgamer.com/software/operating-systems/a-new-california-law-says-all-operating-systems-including-linux-need-to-have-some-form-of-age-verification-at-account-setup Shacknews — AB 1043 Overview → shacknews.com/article/148077/california-assembly-bill-1043-operating-system-os-age-verify-2027 Alston & Bird Legal Analysis → alstonprivacy.com/california-enacts-digital-age-verification-law Reason.org — CA 2025 Tech Policy Recap → reason.org/commentary/recapping-californias-2025-tech-policy-bills Colorado SB 26-051 Full Text → leg.colorado.gov/bills/SB26-051