Country's First Social Media Privacy Law Set to Take Effect in California

Will prohibit schools and employers for requesting social media passwords for monitoring

Starting Jan. 1, 2013, California will be the first state to enact comprehensive social media privacy legislation, officials say.

As he passed the act known as the Social Media Privacy Act on Sept. 27, California Gov. Jerry Brown posted on his Google+ page: "Today I am signing Assembly Bill 1844 and Senate Bill 1349, which prohibit universities and employers from demanding your email and social media passwords. California pioneered the social media revolution. These laws protect Californians from unwarranted invasions of their social media accounts."