this post was submitted on 28 Apr 2026
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Age checks could turn internet into an ID checkpoint and would kill anonymity, Proton CEO says (proton.me)
submitted 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) by Deep@mander.xyz to c/technology@lemmy.world
227 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Online threats to children are real, but the headlong pursuit of age verification that we’re seeing around the world is unacceptable in its approach and far too broad in scope — and we simply can’t afford to get this wrong.

To be clear, parents’ concerns are valid and sincere. Few people would argue that kids should have unfettered access to adult material, to self-harm how-tos, to social media platforms that manipulate them and expose them to abuse.

But it’s the very depth of those worries that is being cynically exploited. Age verification as is currently being proposed in country after country would mean the death of anonymity online.

And we know exactly who stands to gain: The same tech giants who built the privacy nightmare that the internet is today.

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[–] WanderingThoughts@europe.pub 3 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Or nobody verifies their age because it's a hassle, social networks become unprofitable and die.

[–] osanna@lemmy.vg 2 points 16 hours ago

i barely used commercial social media (bsky excepted), but when australia brought in the the ID thing, I just didn't bother going back. I used bsky a lot prior to the social media ban, but last time i logged in, it asked me for ID. I thought "fuck giving my ID to some random fucking company. My GOVT ID!"

[–] boonhet@sopuli.xyz 5 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

Yeah right lol

People are already providing ID en masse for registration.

[–] WanderingThoughts@europe.pub 1 points 2 days ago (1 children)

My parents have trouble typing on their password. Try having them do anything more complex and they'll give up.

[–] boonhet@sopuli.xyz 1 points 2 days ago

Facebook asks for ID nowadays, so does YouTube for adult content I believe. It's been happening for years. It's also easier than typing a password if you're on mobile.

It'll be normalised whether or not there's laws requiring it :/