LINCOLN, Neb.—Today, NetChoice sued Nebraska to stop the portions of LB 383 that force Nebraskans to surrender digital I.D.’s just to access lawful information and use everyday digital services like social media. This law creates significant cybersecurity risks and undermines parents’ authority online.
LB 383 is set to go into effect on July 1, 2026. NetChoice is challenging Nebraska’s law to defend constitutional rights, digital safety, and meaningful solutions that protect families online.
“Nebraska’s new Digital ID law makes a mockery of the First Amendment. The government cannot condition access to fully protected speech on a person’s willingness to hand over their most sensitive information. In fact, there is a large, growing body of law explaining exactly why this approach is unconstitutional,” said Paul Taske, Co-Director of the NetChoice Litigation Center.
“Nebraska joined the fray on the wrong side. When a law goes against the Constitution, it is doomed from the start. Beyond its constitutional shortcomings, Nebraska’s law would actually make its citizens less safe. Digital ID laws, like those implemented in Europe, create honeypots of data that hackers and other bad actors will eagerly exploit for their own gain. Rather than continue down this unconstitutional, unsafe road, Nebraska should chart a new course with the Constitution as its compass.”
Read the complaint, filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska, here.
Similar laws have been blocked across the country because they violate the First Amendment. Additionally, some countries have adopted similar laws globally, with already disastrous results for free speech, cybersecurity, and general effectiveness. What’s more, minors and adults are using insecure VPNs or fringe digital services where these laws are in effect, undermining online safety.
In mandating the collection of sensitive identity documents from everyone, Nebraska further kneecaps digital safety, essentially creating a massive honeypot of personal data that will be irresistible to hackers, cybercriminals, and predators. Cybersecurity experts globally have repeatedly urged governments to stop taking this policy approach. Children are the number one targets for identity theft, with 25% expected to experience it before they turn 18. In 2025, the Identity Theft Resource Center found that the number of data compromises jumped 79% over the last five years.
If it goes into effect, LB 383 threatens to increase censorship, decrease cybersecurity, and decrease digital safety for Nebraskans and their families.
WHY NEBRASKANS SHOULD CARE ABOUT NETCHOICE V. HILGERS:
- Blocking access to protected speech online violates the First Amendment: LB 383 conditions all Nebraskans’ access to protected speech online on whether they are willing to submit sensitive identifying documentation to digital services. This violates the First Amendment and will result in Nebraskans losing access to lawful online speech. The courts agree, too: NetChoice has successfully blocked similar laws in Arkansas, Ohio, and Louisiana.
- Nebraska’s law threatens cybersecurity and online safety: By mandating users undergo digital ID verification processes, Nebraska’s government unintentionally puts the security of all their citizens, especially minors, at risk. Such a mandate requires the most sensitive documents and information of all citizens to be placed into an online honeypot for predators and cybercriminals to exploit. Cybersecurity experts globally have repeatedly urged governments to stop this approach. What’s more, by having to prove guardianship, even more records will be required to be provided to digital services, putting documents like birth certificates at risk, too.
- Similar laws are failing to protect kids on a global scale: Similar digital ID laws have been passed globally, including in the U.K. and Australia. Reports from early 2026 find that nearly 46% of minors find current age checks easy to bypass, with about a third admitting they have already done so. Others are turning to unsafe tools like insecure VPNs or fringe social media services outside the mainstream. This lack of success for digital ID gates shows that this is an ineffective policy approach to keep kids safe online.
- It takes power away from parents: The judge in NetChoice’s Arkansas victory explicitly stated: “Parents—not government officials—are best positioned to decide how their kids use technology.” LB 383 is an attempt by Nebraska’s government to dictate how families use the internet, undermining parents in digital spaces.
- Unconstitutional content restrictions give false hope to parents: This law won’t mitigate harm to children as the state claims because it violates the U.S. Constitution and will ultimately be struck down, as the state legislature was warned in testimony. Lawmakers should embrace solutions that actually work and respect Nebraskans’ constitutional rights, including those outlined in NetChoice’s Digital Safety Shield for America.
NetChoice is fighting to protect constitutional rights online and ensure the internet remains a place for free expression and free enterprise.
Read the complaint here. Find case resources for NetChoice v. Hilgers here.
Please contact press@netchoice.org with inquiries.