Discord is verifying some users’ age with ID and facial scans

Discord is preventing immoderate users from accessing delicate contented unless they let the level to verify their property by scanning their look oregon ID. The caller property verification process is described arsenic an “experiment” by Discord, and is being trialed successful the United Kingdom and Australia successful effect to section laws that necessitate online platforms to person guardrails successful spot for safeguarding children.

The caller look and ID scanning requirements lone use to Discord users who haven’t antecedently verified their property connected the platform. Discord says this is simply a “one-time process” that volition beryllium triggered successful 2 situations: erstwhile users are exposed to nude oregon sexually explicit contented that’s been flagged by Discord’s delicate media filter, oregon erstwhile users effort to alteration filter power settings to forestall specified contented from being blurred oregon blocked. 

An property verification model volition past look that prompts the idiosyncratic to either let Discord to entree their instrumentality camera and scan their face, oregon taxable a photograph of their ID by scanning a QR codification via their phone.

Discord is apt trialing this process to appease caller laws successful the UK and Australia that purpose to restrict children from accessing delicate worldly online. The UK’s Online Safety Act requires online platforms that whitethorn big pornographic contented to present “robust” age-checking techniques, portion Australia is requiring that under-16s beryllium prevented from accessing societal media platforms entirely. We person asked Discord if it has immoderate plans to rotation retired its experimental property verification process successful different regions.

Discord is placing a astonishing magnitude of spot successful the accuracy of the look scanning tool, fixed immoderate users whitethorn beryllium banned if the process decides they look excessively young to beryllium utilizing the platform. Discord says that users who are verified incorrectly tin retry the process oregon request a manual review, and that users who person been erroneously banned tin entreaty the decision.

Discord says the accusation submitted during this property verification experimentation won’t beryllium stored by the institution oregon immoderate of its vendors, careless of what verification method you choose. “For Face Scan, the solution our vendor uses operates on-device, which means determination is nary postulation of immoderate biometric accusation erstwhile you scan your face,” says Discord. “For ID verification, the scan of your ID is deleted upon verification.”