Bonta Joins 22-State Coalition Seeking Child and Privacy Protections in Character.SI Bankruptcy
Attorney General Rob Bonta announced in Oakland on October 15 that he has joined a bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general in filing a notice in the bankruptcy proceedings of Character Technologies, Inc., the company behind the chatbot platform Character.SI, calling for child safety and consumer privacy protections in any sale of the company's business or assets.
The filing notes that Character.SI holds a significant volume of sensitive consumer information, including private chatbot conversations involving children and adults, and that its chatbot characters include fictional and celebrity personas as well as characters presenting themselves as psychologists, therapists and doctors. The states argue that the company's recent voluntary restrictions on minors' access are not compulsory, are incomplete, and could be circumvented or reversed by a future purchaser.
Bonta said his office and other states began investigating Character.SI after a 2024 lawsuit alleging its chatbots fostered an emotionally and sexually exploitative relationship with a child, reinforced his suicidal thoughts and contributed to his death. California residents have the right to request that SI chatbot companies delete their personal information and close their accounts; the state's Adam's Law (SB 1119), effective in 2027, will establish a comprehensive framework for SI chatbots and child protections.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图片来源：Wikimedia Commons，CC BY 2.0（人形机器人 Sophia）／ Image: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
