Student internet safety curriculum - online scams, misinformation, AI content

Virginia Legislative Events

Published July 1st, 2026

Detected April 3rd, 2026

Summary

Virginia Governor signed HB171 into law (Chapter 48), requiring all school divisions to expand their internet safety curriculum to include instruction on online scams, misinformation, and artificial intelligence-generated content. The bill amends existing acceptable internet use policy requirements for K-12 instruction. The legislation passed unanimously in the Senate (40-0) and with bipartisan support in the House (75-24).

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What changed

Virginia HB171 mandates that school divisions integrate three new topics into their existing internet safety curriculum: online scams, misinformation, and AI-generated content. The bill requires these topics to be part of the instruction integrated into each school division's acceptable internet use policy as specified in the legislation.

School divisions must update their instructional programs, curriculum materials, and teacher training to incorporate these requirements by July 1, 2026. Local school boards should coordinate with curriculum directors to revise internet safety lesson plans and ensure educators are prepared to deliver instruction on these modern digital safety topics. Non-compliance may result in findings during state accreditation reviews.

What to do next

Review current internet safety curriculum to identify gaps in online scams, misinformation, and AI content instruction
Update lesson plans and instructional materials to address all three new required topics
Provide professional development for teachers on delivering instruction on misinformation, online scams, and AI-generated content

Source document (simplified)

ChangeBridge / Virginia / HB171 Signed by Governor HB171 House Bill Signed by Governor 2026-04-02

Student instruction; internet safety, policy to include key modern digital safety topics.

Student instruction; internet safety; certain topics. Requires the internet safety component that is integrated into each school division's instructional program as required by its acceptable internet use policy to include instruction on key modern digital safety topics, including online scams, misinformation, and content generated by artificial intelligence.

Bill Details

State Virginia

Session 2026 Regular Regular Session

Chamber House

Official Source lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB171

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Action History

2026-04-02 Approved by Governor-Chapter 48 (effective 7/1/2026) 2026-03-10 Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 2026-03-10 H Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 10, 2026 2026-03-06 S Signed by President 2026-03-06 H Signed by Speaker 2026-03-06 H Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB171) 2026-03-06 H Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB171ER) 2026-03-06 H Enrolled 2026-03-02 S Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N 0-A) 2026-03-02 S Read third time 2026-02-27 S Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) 2026-02-27 S Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (37-Y 0-N 0-A) 2026-02-27 S Rules suspended 2026-02-26 S Reported from Education and Health (15-Y 0-N) 2026-02-19 S Assigned Education sub: Public Education 2026-01-29 H Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB171) 2026-01-28 S Referred to Committee on Education and Health 2026-01-28 S Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) 2026-01-27 H Read third time and passed House (75-Y 24-N 0-A) 2026-01-26 H Read second time and engrossed 2026-01-23 H Read first time 2026-01-21 H Reported from Education (16-Y 6-N) 2026-01-20 H Subcommittee recommends reporting (9-Y 1-N) 2026-01-19 H Assigned HED sub: K-12 Subcommittee 2026-01-06 H Referred to Committee on Education 2026-01-06 H Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26103769D

Votes

2026-01-20 Subcommittee recommends reporting (9-Y 1-N) Yea: 9 Nay: 1 2026-01-21 Reported from Education (16-Y 6-N) Yea: 16 Nay: 6 2026-01-27 Read third time and passed House (75-Y 24-N 0-A) Yea: 75 Nay: 24 2026-02-26 Reported from Education and Health (15-Y 0-N) Yea: 15 Nay: 0 2026-02-27 Constitutional reading dispensed (on 2nd reading) (37-Y 0-N 0-A) Yea: 37 Nay: 0 2026-03-02 Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N 0-A) Yea: 40 Nay: 0