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Colorado age-verification law exempts Linux volunteers by targeting app stores

Original: Colorado kept Linux volunteers out of its age law by tying the duty to Apple's App Store and Google Play. Governor Jared

Colorado has passed an age-verification law that applies only to operators of commercial app stores, sparing volunteer-run Linux distributions. Governor Jared Polis signed the measure in June 2026, meaning Apple's App Store and Google Play must check users' ages, while a freely downloaded Debian installer carries no such duty. Observers see it as a pragmatic carve-out for open-source developers.

Why now: The law's focus on commercial app stores rather than all software distributors is seen as an unusual and consequential drafting choice for open-source communities.

ColoradoJared PolisApple App StoreGoogle PlayDebian

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• Colorado kept Linux volunteers out of its age law by tying the duty to Apple's App Store and Google Play. Governor Jared Polis signed it in June 2026. Only a company that runs or preinstalls a commercial app store must ask for an age. A downloaded Debian installer never… · canartuc · 8

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