A new UK law took effect on Friday, mandating that pornography websites verify the age of their users.
According to the BBC, around 6,000 adult sites have committed to complying with the Online Safety Act by implementing age verification. However, at least one major site had not yet required age checks as of Friday morning.
Age Checks Extend to Social Platforms
The law also obliges online platforms to prevent children from encountering harmful content. As a result, platforms like Reddit, Bluesky, X, and Grindr have started asking UK users to confirm their age using methods such as selfies or government-issued IDs.
This move is part of a broader wave of child protection laws that could normalize online age verification worldwide, according to Wired.
Groups like the Electronic Frontier Foundation have criticized the approach, warning it threatens online privacy and anonymity. This concern is underscored by a recent data breach at the dating safety app Tea, where selfies and digital IDs used for verification were exposed.
Some users may attempt to circumvent these age checks by submitting fake IDs, using images of video game characters, or employing VPNs to mask their location.
What The Author Thinks
Protecting children from harmful online content is essential, but enforcing age verification through personal data collection poses serious privacy risks. Breaches exposing sensitive information can harm users and erode trust. The challenge lies in developing secure, privacy-conscious methods that effectively block minors without compromising anonymity or data security.
Featured image credit: Kampus Production via Pexels
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