Discord will roll out age verification next month for full access to its platform

Discord is rolling out age verification globally starting next month Announce on monday. All users will be placed in a “teen-friendly experience” by default unless they prove they are an adult. Age verification will be required to change certain settings and access age-restricted content.

Discord users will need to confirm they are an adult in order to remove sensitive content or turn off the setting, and only adults can access age-restricted channels, servers, and app commands. Additionally, messages from people the user may not know are directed to a separate mailbox by default, and only verified adults can modify this setting.

People will receive warning prompts about friend requests from users they may not know, and only adults will be able to speak on stage in servers.

To complete age verification, users need to either complete a facial age estimate or submit an ID to Discord’s vendor partners. The platform plans to add more options in the future. Discord notes that some users may be required to use multiple methods when additional information is needed to set an age group.

Estimating facial age requires taking video selfies, which Discord says never leave your device. Additionally, the company says that identifiers provided to its vendor partners are deleted quickly and, in most cases, immediately after age is confirmed.

It is worth noting the disagreement It has been detected Last October, about 70,000 users may have had sensitive data, such as photos of their government IDs, exposed after hackers compromised a third-party vendor the platform uses for age appeals. The violation is reversed Concerns of digital rights activists About using age verification as a way to make the Internet “safer.”

Discord’s global launch of age verification comes after the company’s decision to do so Create age checks For users in the UK and Australia last year.

“Rolling out default teen settings globally builds on Discord’s existing security architecture, giving teens strong protections while allowing verified adults flexibility,” Savannah Badalich, head of product policy at Discord, said in a press release. “We design our products with teen safety principles at their core and will continue to work with safety experts, policymakers, and Discord users to support the meaningful, long-term well-being of teens on the platform.”

This announcement reflects similar steps taken by other online platforms, reflecting increasing international efforts to promote child safety. Recently, Roblox was introduced Mandatory face verification To access chats on its platform. Last July on YouTube Launched age estimate Technology in the United States to identify teenage users in order to provide a more age-appropriate experience.

Discord’s age verification changes will begin in early March, and both new and existing users will need to verify their age to access age-restricted content.