Parents whose children died after buying fentanyl-tainted pills on Snapchat protested in front of the company’s Santa Monica office Tuesday, pushing for more safety requirements on social media.
“Sammy was an amazing kid. He was 16, getting ready to apply for college, straight A student on the football team,” Dr. Laura Berman told KNX News’ Emily Valdez. “On February 7, 2021, he died of fentanyl poisoning. A drug dealer was matched with him via Snapchat,through the algorithm.”
Berman’s husband is currently in Washington, D.C. lobbying for Congress to pass Sammy’s Law, which would require social media companies to integrate third-party software that lets parents monitor their kids’ messages for mentions of drugs, violence, suicidal thoughts, and other potential dangers.
“Had we had that software on Sammy's devices, he would probably still be here today, because we would have known the second that drug dealer got in touch with him and they started to communicate,” Berman said.
Opponents of the legislation worry that third-party monitoring platforms put children’s data at risk, and that invasive surveillance could endanger children in unsupportive homes. But parents say something has to be done to hold social media companies accountable.
“Right now, it is similar to the Wild West. We've got them doing whatever they want in the name of making money,” said Amanda Faith, whose 13-year-old son Luca died after buying what he believed to be Percocet from a dealer on Snapchat.
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In a statement to KNX News, Snapchat representatives said “we continue to work diligently to combat drug dealers from abusing our platform, support law enforcement efforts to help bring dealers to justice, and raise awareness with our community about the dangers of fentanyl.”
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