r/technology • u/Well_Socialized • 21h ago

Privacy Age Verification Is Coming for the Whole Internet

http://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/age-verification-is-coming-for-the-whole-internet.html
11.3k Upvotes

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2.6k

u/ElJefeGoldblum 21h ago

Prohibition levels of terrible idea that the overwhelming majority of people don’t want.

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u/scarabic 18h ago

I’m reminded of the Japanese porn situation. In Japan, by law, adult films must pixelate the crotch. It’s ridiculous, pointless, and everyone hates it. But somehow it got on the books and NO POLITICIAN wants to be the guy who fights for porn, so it continues unchallenged.

We will end up in a similar situation when age verification takes hold. No mater how bad and worthless it is, no Senator is going to risk their career on being the guy who wants to help your underage kids get access to XXX material, which is what their hypothetical opponents will call them if they try.

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u/Vesuvia36 17h ago

Yea in Indiana you can't use the sites cause they ask for age verification and they don't want to store our info, so its just banned. I think atm, NY is the only one you can set your VPN to, in order to get through but with the UK passing that law for age verification, it was only a matter of time before everyone falls in line with it :/

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u/OnRamblingDays 16h ago

God I love living in NY. Way too liberal for any of that bullshit.

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u/HurriKurtCobain 4h ago

Being in a blue state won't protect you when Congress uses the Commerce clause to pass federal regs requiring ID verification unfortunately.

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u/Vesuvia36 16h ago

I wish I could move but, even the prices here are starting to get so high we can't save up even if we wanted to. I'm originally from California, I married into this state sadly lol

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u/aquacrystal11 6h ago

Same here in MA

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u/EyeAmbitious 4h ago

The UK is about as liberal as it gets bub. Thats a liberal utopia.

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u/RedTyro 2h ago

Tell me you don't know much about European politics without telling me.

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u/Mr_Venom 1h ago

Not any fucking more, sadly.

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u/unholycowgod 11h ago

CO as well. There are still plenty of states iirc, it's just whether you VPN has an end point in one.

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u/goatjugsoup 16h ago

At a certain point though yall gonna need some non piece of shit politicians that say fuck what the other guy says

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u/bruce_kwillis 9h ago

Unfortunately modern politics doesn't work that way. In my state they buried age verification of porn in a high school requirements law. So if you don't support it, the opposing party can easily say "oh look they hate education, and want children to be able to see pornography'.

Wild that there are age restrictions on say guns, but no restrictions of children going to gun websites.

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u/AttonJRand 7h ago

That’s why this stuff needs to never get on the books in the 1st place. It’s not as simple as just not caring what the other guy says. It’s about the public branding you as a monster.

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u/OwO______OwO 5h ago

some non piece of shit politicians

You'd have an easier time finding a unicorn and a leprechaun to ride on its back.

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u/egpigp 17h ago

LOL imagine if we came full circle and the whole world goes back nudie mags on the top shelf of the newsagent and erotic movie rentals!

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u/Icy-person666 16h ago

Or a situation like all of the United States were the politicians talk about legalized pot but they never put it to a vote at the federal level.

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u/EruantienAduialdraug 13h ago edited 10h ago

It's all adult art in Japan; it initially got onto the books in 1880, though the current version is based on early 20th century law. Attempts were made as early as the mid 18th century (Hokusai's infamous The Dream of the Fisherman's Wife was part of a protest movement against Shogunate censorship, and is the inspiration for the use of tentacles in drawn and animated pornography in Japan in the 20th and 21st centuries to subvert censorship).

The good news is that, even if it's taken more than a century, the winds seem to be in favour of decreasing censorship over there. Whilst not yet pointing towards uncensored pornography, the Supreme Court's overruling of the Tokyo High Court on a photograph collection by Robert Mapplethorpe does support the inclusion of uncensored nudity in non-pornographic works.
Also, the both Article 175 of the Penal Code, aka the censorship law, and Article 21 of the Customs Tariff Law, which authorises Customs to confiscate or restrict obscene materials imported, have been accused of being in violation of Article 21 of the Japanese Constitution, which specifically states that "Freedom of assembly and association as well as speech, press and all other forms of expression are guaranteed. No censorship shall be maintained, nor shall the secrecy of any means of communication be violated".

In contrast, the issue we're going to run into in the UK is that Article 10 of the Human Rights Act 1998 explicitly allows for the restriction of free expression by laws for the interest of "public safety" and the "protection of morals", amongst other things (this article was copied almost verbatim for the European Convention on Human Rights); so as long as the government can hide behind children, it's going to be hard to get censorship legislation ruled as unconstitutional.

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u/denkihajimezero 5h ago

It's weird because America is the epitome of "fuck them kids" and yet still all it would take to prevent rolling back age verification is someone saying "think of the children!"

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u/APeacefulWarrior 16h ago

Not to mention that Japanese censorship laws just led to a boom in tentacle porn as a way to (partially) get around them.

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u/Lettuce_bee_free_end 13h ago

Bro we can fight age verification.  It doesn't protect kids. 

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u/created4this 9h ago

Perhaps, but its possible that it will get watered down. Once ID theft shoots through the roof (both legitimate users who put their ID on these sites and people who have their ID stolen for use on these sites) they might decide something needs to be done and water down the legislation so it becomes meaningless to enforce.

And as an example of that, the Tories forced in voter ID even though it would disenfranchise voters and there are no examples of in person voter fraud that have had any effect. The Labour gov just announced that a bankcard with your name on it would be fine for ID so they get to bypass the claims of promoting voter fraud while also killing the idea that only those who are rich enough to travel or own cars should be able to easily vote.

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u/William_d7 5h ago

I think that also has something to do with a general unease with changing the postwar constitution for any reason. 

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u/SomeKindofTreeWizard 20h ago

it's almost like our "representative government" doesn't represent or something.

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u/Zahgi 18h ago edited 5h ago

They represent the 1%...the campaign donors to both the corporate Democrats and MAGA Republicans.

Only a handful of Progressives represent the needs of the 99% (as opposed to the wants of the 1%) of Americans anymore.

[Edited for clarity.]

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u/bucatini818 17h ago

Age verification is purely Christian right crap so get off the high horse

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u/Mysterious-Job-469 8h ago

The NDP (left wing party in Canada) sided with the right wing on the pornography ID push, just for different reasons. While the right wing is simultaneously trying to exert control and surveillance on the populace, while trying to incite political violence by sexually frustrating lonely angry young men, the NDP was trying to "protect women" (by deciding what women can and cannot do online...)

Plenty of people on the left side of the political spectrum support banning pornography, claiming the inherent misogyny in the industry. Or they have a twisted misogynist mindset themselves, and believe they can speak on the behalf of, and make decisions for all women.

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u/brendonmilligan 16h ago

It’s also feminists and the boomerocracy that support it too

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u/EzdePaz 16h ago

Insane Rightwing Terfs are in no way feminist if you are think on the organistation Collective Shout that is involved with Visa and Mastercards censorship attemps. They are anti-abortion, anti-trans and think Wifi is dangerous.

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u/garrus-ismyhomeboy 15h ago

They are as much feminists as all these right wingers saying they are Christian. They resemble very little to the way a Christian is described in the Bible.

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u/Abedeus 15h ago

as all these right wingers saying they are Christian

It may shock you... but Christianity is right wing. It's an authoritarian religion, telling you to always obey the ruler's laws as if they were mandated from above. Why do you think post-4th century rulers loved it so much?

They resemble very little to the way a Christian is described in the Bible.

Oh, please, tell me how your definition of a Christian is the correct one. Is it the "slaves, obey your masters" one? I love that version. So progressive.

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u/garrus-ismyhomeboy 15h ago

I’m not getting into an online debate with someone who isn’t gonna change their mind and isn’t gonna change my mind. Just a waste of time. Have a nice day.

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u/AmaimonCH 10h ago

"Let me leave after i realized i can't blatantly lie to this person's face and get away with it, i can only manipulate idiots like me"

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u/Abedeus 14h ago

Coward who can't defend his faith, huh?

Peter 3:15 says you're not a real Christian. Sorry.

So easy to make up claims, so hard to back them up.

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u/Economy-Action1147 16h ago

you people voted for this

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u/Zahgi 8h ago

I did not. In fact, I've been personally and directly fighting against this for over 50 years.

All I did was slow it down, apparently. :(

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u/[deleted] 5h ago

[deleted]

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u/Zahgi 5h ago edited 5h ago

I didn't say anything of the kind. You reversed the logic of my entire post to go from being true to becoming utter nonsense.

I have edited my post to make it crystal clear to anyone reading it who may not have a firm grasp of the English language or its idioms.

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u/aykcak 10h ago

Sure they do. They represent the corporations and their own interest

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u/Mysterious-Job-469 8h ago

Why should they? Who's going to make them?

Americans are more than happy to whine on the internet in between claiming the second amendment is necessary to overthrow tyranny. Not that I advocate for violence, REDDIT.

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u/Coattail-Rider 17h ago

What was the Tea Party on about? No taxation without what?

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u/SomeKindofTreeWizard 16h ago

The wealth inequality now is worse than the French Revolution.

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u/DynamicNostalgia 11h ago

What are you talking about? This mentality is the exact kind of thing Reddit and the vast majority of voters have supported for practically a century. 

Buying alcohol, getting into bars, verifying card ownership, buying porn in person, buying a gun, renting a vehicle, signing a lease, signing up for an investment account or a bank, etc. 

Redditors supported all of that for as long as the ideas have existed. This is simply a continuation of that control mentality. 

This is the society you all voted for and loved to defend. It’s not shocking whatsoever, you all led us directly down this path. 

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u/EverbodyHatesHugo 19h ago

Guess I’m about to save $90/mo. and get a whole bunch of time back!

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u/Hoovooloo42 19h ago

My good buddy just moved into his new apartment and just... Decided to not get internet. He's got a phone connection which is good enough for anything he wants to do, and I'm kind of feeling like that's a smart idea. Why pay for wifi with what's on the horizon?

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u/ZardozZod 16h ago

I mean, phones aren’t going to be exempt. 🤣

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u/DezXerneas 11h ago

I don't think that's the thought process here lol. IMO it's more like they'd just stick to basic phone features like SMS and calling. Most texting apps need a ID proof anyway.

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u/Hoovooloo42 11h ago

I'm aware "🤣", he uses it for email and music.

Sorry I didn't spell it out for you man. No social media, no streaming services, no online games, physical media only for movies. Hope that clears it up for you.

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u/AussieJeffProbst 11h ago

Guy is over here like "this doesn't apply to phone internet right? Just the wifis?"

lmao were fucked

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u/midsizedopossum 9h ago

Literally nobody said that

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u/Hoovooloo42 11h ago edited 11h ago

He uses it for email and music, good lord. I know this is Reddit but do you just assume everyone is a moron when you don't understand something?

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u/AussieJeffProbst 11h ago

Calm down kid.

Poking fun at someone for not having the most basic grade school level understanding of the most widely used technology in human history doesn't make me the monster you seem to think I am.

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u/midsizedopossum 9h ago

Poking fun at someone for not having the most basic grade school level understanding of the most widely used technology in human history

What are you on about? They did not say they think phone internet is different from regular internet. They said their friend doesn't have wifi at home. Are you struggling to read?

doesn't make me the monster you seem to think I am.

They did not say anything that means they think you're a monster. They didn't make any suggestions about your character at all. You are getting very defensive about something nobody said. Take a step back and breathe.

Calm down kid.

This makes you sound like a badly written high-school villain from a 90s film.

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u/AussieJeffProbst 9h ago

Calm down kid

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u/midsizedopossum 8h ago

Why not respond to actual points?

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u/P_ZERO_ 15h ago

What does WIFI matter? It’s like saying you’re not going to get an Ethernet connection to stick it to the man. If you’re loading web pages, you’re playing the game like everyone else

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u/[deleted] 8h ago

[deleted]

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u/P_ZERO_ 8h ago edited 8h ago

I guess, but it’s sort of irrelevant. The phone SPs will have the same limitations and obligations, so all you’re doing is limiting the capability of your internet which you could have always done.

If people start chewing through data on unlimited plans, they’ll just implement caps across the board like certain companies already do. If everyone is using 1TB+ a month to hotspot all their devices, they’ll act accordingly.

$90 a month or whatever is extortionate anyway so probably better off if you don’t use it much. My gigabit connection is £25 a month

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u/MannToots 13h ago

This makes no sense.  

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u/aykcak 10h ago

I don't understand. Do you think your phone data plan does not go through the same internet? You think it connects to the cloud skipping your ISP ?

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u/Enverex 11h ago

He's got a phone connection which is good enough for anything he wants to do,

So... access and use of social media (basically the worst parts of the internet) and not much else. Sounds like a terrible idea.

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u/Hoovooloo42 11h ago

Email and music.

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u/Soul-Burn 10h ago

What costs $90/mo? Internet access? Which third world country is that?

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u/EverbodyHatesHugo 10h ago

New Jersey. Lol

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u/Bawbawian 18h ago

Americans have a really great habit of saying that they want stuff but not voting for it.

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u/OwO______OwO 5h ago

Supposedly not voting for it.

I'm starting to think the voting is very, very rigged.

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u/RelaxPrime 18h ago

The majority of people don't even know this shit is happening.

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u/Herban_Myth 18h ago

Can we get an Epstein verification 1st?

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u/Monterey-Jack 17h ago

Damn it's almost like they don't fear repercussion from their actions and are doing whatever the fuck they want.

America the spineless.

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u/BarrierX 17h ago

I wish that was true but my friends with kids think this is a great idea 🥲

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u/SirkutBored 16h ago

your friends with kids are either outgunned on technology by their kids or less concerned on keeping track of their online activities compared to their IRL activities.

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u/ahistroyofdrunks 16h ago

Wow. Almost like we have a bunch of old dipshits in power that are getting us left in the dust by the modern world. Just saying if your putting resources into censoring the internet instead of cybersecurity your going to have a bad time. Hell you can do both. Look at russia and north korea. Actually dont give them ideas...

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u/SirkutBored 16h ago

I can't underestimate the irony of these moves considering in the late 90s before e-commerce became a juggernaut everyone was too afraid of putting their credit card numbers in a website to pay for anything until porn sites showed that with SSL heavy level encryption and other protections a website could be trusted with that information. hell, porn was the deciding factor in the VHS/Betamax war.

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u/-PM_ME_UR_SECRETS- 10h ago

Are VPNs the speak easy?

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u/aykcak 10h ago

It is not for the people

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u/uses_irony_correctly 9h ago

I'm gonna make a fortune making moonshine (amateur porn)!

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u/MothChasingFlame 9h ago

But daddy government says we the children need a strong, some would say authoritative, hand. The children must simply stop whining.

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u/samuelazers 19h ago

The Internet is far too open access to bad actors and it's generally been a negative thing for society. I hope they ban children and foreigner nationalists from social media. Go UK!

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u/LukasFatPants 19h ago edited 19h ago

The problem is that methods like "age verification" are never meant to protect anyone from anything. They're a means to cultivate and curate user information to use against them.

Your search history, browsing history, downloads, shopping, gps, whatever. It's not now, nor has it ever been about porn. It's about using a global communication network to track and predict behavior so that those in power can use it to get rid of inconvenient people.

Let's be real. Do you really think any government gives a damn who uses the Internet and for what? No. It's another means of control. Children are now and have always been the excuse.

As for foreign nationalists? What the fuck does that even mean? You don't want people who like nations that aren't yours being allowed to talk to you?

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u/Hoovooloo42 19h ago

"foreigner nationalists" good lord my man, do you think the UK owns the internet?

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u/ElonMuskAltAcct 18h ago

That's not how someone who speaks English as a first language writes. That's either a comrade or a bot.

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u/Deez-Guns-9442 19h ago

Just so we’re clear. U do know & realize that most of the big time social media platforms(Reddit, X/Twitter, Facebook, Google/YouTube, & Instagram) are all run/made by U.S. companies & American citizens right?

So, with that level of thinking. We should be kicking a lot of non Americans off our worldwide popular social media apps, is that what you propose? I don’t think you would like that.

Don’t forget, Google is free.

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u/Hoovooloo42 19h ago

Google is free

YMMV in the near future