Imran Rahman-Jones & Chris Vallance<\/span><\/p>\nTechnology reporters<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n\n
Discord is testing face scanning to verify some users’ ages in the UK and Australia.<\/p>\n
The social platform, which says it has over 200 million monthly users around the world, was initially used by gamers but now has communities on a wide range of topics including pornography.<\/p>\n
The UK’s online safety laws mean platforms with adult content will need have “robust” age verification in place by July.<\/p>\n
And social media expert Matt Navarra told the BBC “this isn’t a one-off – it’s the start of a bigger shift”.<\/p>\n
“Regulators want real proof, and facial recognition might be the fastest route there,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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But campaigners have said these types of checks are ineffective and could lead to privacy issues.<\/p>\n
“Age assurance is becoming the new seatbelt for the internet,” said Mr Navarra. <\/p>\n
“Will it become the norm in the UK? Honestly, yes, probably.”<\/p>\n
He said he believed the incoming changes in online safety laws mean online platforms would beef up their age verification processes.<\/p>\n
“The era of ‘click here to confirm you’re 13’ is dead,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Get age verification wrong now, and you don’t just lose users – you could lose a courtroom battle or incur fines.”<\/p>\n
Firms which do not comply with the Online Safety Act could be fined up to 10% of their global turnover.<\/p>\n
Instagram previously brought in age checks using facial recognition in 2022 for users who want to change their profile settings to be over 18. <\/p>\n
The social media company requires users to take a selfie video on their phone and uses AI to estimate the person’s age. <\/p>\n
Like Discord, they can alternatively upload a picture of their photo ID.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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The US-based platform says the verification – which it describes as “an experiment” – will be a one-time check.<\/p>\n
It will apply the first time a user comes across content which it has flagged as sensitive, or if they change their settings on viewing sensitive media.<\/p>\n
Users can either use the face scanner or upload a photo of their ID to confirm their age.<\/p>\n
It says information used for age checks will not be stored by Discord or the verification company. <\/p>\n
Face scans will stay on the device and not be collected, and ID uploads will be deleted after the verification is complete, according to the company.<\/p>\n
Content which is flagged as sensitive is already automatically blocked or blurred for teenagers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n