On July 1, California became the first state in the country to require that “bots” reveal their “artificial identity” when they are used for certain commercial and political purposes. The law does not provide for a private right of action, but regulators and plaintiffs may try to bring claims pursuant to California’s unfair competition law (Cal. Civ. Code § 17200).
SB 1001, which became operative on July 1, prohibits the use of undeclared bots to communicate or interact with another person in California online “with the intent to mislead the other person about [the bot’s] artificial identity for the purpose of knowingly deceiving the person about the content of the communication” in order to incentivize a purchase or influence a vote. The law exempts service providers of online platforms from its requirements.
The law defines “bot” as “an automated online account where all or substantially all of the actions or posts of that account are not the result of a person.” A spam Twitter account, for example, would be considered a bot.
A person using a bot must disclose the use of the bot to avoid liability. Disclosure must be clear, conspicuous and reasonably designed to inform persons with whom the bot communicates or interacts that it is a bot. “Clear and conspicuous” is not defined by the statute, but other state and federal guidance exists on point, including guidance from the Federal Trade Commission.
Businesses that employ online virtual assistants or bots should ensure, among other things, that the artificial nature of those mechanisms is clearly and conspicuously disclosed to users. They should also reach out to relevant vendors and ensure any vendor-operated bots that appear on the businesses’ websites contain the required disclosures.
