(Credit: Silas Stein/picture alliance via Getty Image)
Discord is testing ID and facial scans for age verification in Australia and the UK.
As part of the experiment, if the platform’s sensitive media filter blurs any content, users who haven’t already verified their age will be required to do so by completing a facial scan or submitting an ID. They'll face the same requirement when trying to change those filter settings.
Age verification is a one-time process, and the data used for it will not be stored by the company or its vendor, Discord says on its support page. Once verified, users will receive a DM confirming their age group. If it's incorrect, they can submit an application for manual review.
(Credit: Discord)The new verification method could be a response to stricter social media regulations in the two countries, according to The Verge. In Australia, social media is banned for users under the age of 16; in the UK, an Online Safety Act requires platforms that may host pornographic content to have a "robust" age-verification technique.
This development comes as Discord faces a lawsuit from the state of New Jersey, citing the platform’s alleged failure to protect children.
"Discord has deceived children and parents about the efficacy of the Application’s safety features, leaving children vulnerable to harassment, abuse, and sexual exploitation by predators who lurk on the platform,” Attorney General Matthew Platkin writes in the complaint.
The lawsuit calls out Discord features that allow users of any age to sign up under a display name and engage with people they don’t know. This makes it easy for anyone to “gain direct, private access to a child user with just a few clicks,” Platkin claims.
“Unless permanently enjoined and held to account for this conduct, the children in New Jersey will remain vulnerable to the predatory and harmful behavior that Discord allows,” Platkin adds.