• 105 is a spectacularly bad idea. • It’s an age-verification bill that effectively bans VPN access to certain websites for Wisconsinites and censors lawful speech. • We wrote about it last November in our blog “Lawmakers Want to Ban VPNs-And They Have No Idea What They’re Doing,” but since then, the bill has passed the State Assembly and is scheduled for a vote in the State Senate tomorrow. • In light of this, EFF sent a letter to the entire Wisconsin Legislature urging lawmakers to reject this dangerous bill. • You can read the full letter here. • This bill both requires invasive age verification for websites that host content lawmakers might deem “sexual” and requires that those sites block any user that connects via a Virtual Private Network (VPN).
Article Summaries:
- The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has urged Wisconsin lawmakers to reject Senate Bill 130 / Assembly Bill 105, a controversial age‑verification law that would ban VPN use on certain websites. The bill requires sites to verify users’ ages and block traffic from VPNs, a measure EFF argues is technically unworkable and would force sites to over‑block IP ranges or restrict all Wisconsin users. Critics say the law expands the definition of “harmful to minors” beyond court‑approved categories, compelling sites to collect sensitive data such as IDs and biometric information. The bill passed the Assembly and is slated for a Senate vote tomorrow; EFF calls on Wisconsinites to contact their senators to oppose it.
Sources:
- https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/02/eff-wisconsin-legislature-vpn-bans-are-still-terrible-idea (Latest source article published: 2026-02-18 00:49 UTC)