Utah Passes Child Safety Law Requiring Apple to Verify User Age

[Ctrlos]

And that is just the beginning. I fully expect all social media to require photo id in the near future.

Age verification doesn't need photo ID online. A small 1c credit card transaction is enough. They could force this to be via Apple/Google Pay so kids can't just steal their parents card details. This way no bank details are exchanged either.

Social Media requiring this sort of age verification would kill bots and spam in a day. If anything they could go back to the old '$1 per year' WhatsApp charge. A network as small as Bluesky would get $32m in revenue on an annual basis, more than enough to maintain the company and pay the staff.

 

[redheeler]

And that is just the beginning. I fully expect all social media to require photo id in the near future.

I hope it does, that way I'll just stop using it and use my time more productively instead. 🙃

 

[redheeler]

Age verification doesn't need photo ID online. A small 1c credit card transaction is enough. They could force this to be via Apple/Google Pay so kids can't just steal their parents card details. This way no bank details are exchanged either.

Social Media requiring this sort of age verification would kill bots and spam in a day. If anything they could go back to the old '$1 per year' WhatsApp charge. A network as small as Bluesky would get $32m in revenue on an annual basis, more than enough to maintain the company and pay the staff.

And teens can't set up Apple Pay?

 

[HighwaySnowman]

Well, they can do age verification the same way adults sites do age verification: the honor system.😁😇
I [a kid] lie with the website and it with me,
And in our faults by lies we flattered be.

Website: Are you over 18? Yes or No.
Underage kids: Yes.
Website: Welcome in.

It works fine now, no need to change it.

This isn't about protecting children from anything, they don't actually need to be "protected" from information online.

This is a government enabled corporate data grab under the guise of "but think of the children", and that's all it is.

 

[Ctrlos]

And teens can't set up Apple Pay?

Not with a credit card, no.

 

[surferfb]

Not with a credit card, no.

Actually, Amex allows kids as young as 13 to have credit cards in their own name. They have to be "authorized users" on their parent's account, but they absolutely could be set up on Apple Pay.

 

[turbineseaplane]

And that is just the beginning. I fully expect all social media to require photo id in the near future.

Sounds great to me.

Anything that destroys social media would be a net good

 

[xander49x]

it's time to take the Governor, Lt. Governor, and each person in the legislative body of Utah to Court and sue them. if parents can't monitor and parent their children If they can't make them pay a fine each month of a thousand dollars for each child. that will wake them up to the responsibility.

 

[Stromos]

You seriously expect the authorities to simply accept Apple/Google’s word that they checked since Apple/Google hadn’t retained the proof they had checked?

As someone who works in convivence stores with mobile loyalty programs yup that's how it works. You partner with a validation service and then you never hold any of the data goes and does the one-time validation and we a "token" that's the virtual age verified checkmark for that person. We never saw the age of the user, nor do we care. They are of age. Any audit the token is present.

 

[frenchcamp49er]

Not with a credit card, no.

My kids both had cards at 13 for emergencies, had their name on it. Also helped t hem get their own "first" card.

 

[Ethosik]

Age verification doesn't need photo ID online. A small 1c credit card transaction is enough. They could force this to be via Apple/Google Pay so kids can't just steal their parents card details. This way no bank details are exchanged either.

Social Media requiring this sort of age verification would kill bots and spam in a day. If anything they could go back to the old '$1 per year' WhatsApp charge. A network as small as Bluesky would get $32m in revenue on an annual basis, more than enough to maintain the company and pay the staff.

Tell that to even adult sites that require a subscription!

 

[erinsarah]

Are you reading something into this more than just having kids under 17 be able to purchase apps? ANY APPS? What the hell does that have to do with "proper parenting"? I absolutely hate when people play the "proper parenting" card like kids aren't influenced by friends and peers and so parents are a failure if they do? Sheesh...

By your logic, let's just not ask for ID for buying liquor or cigarettes because, you know...proper parenting should just take care of everything.

Amen. I was a great kid growing up and had amazing parents. Doesn't mean I didn't buy P*rn mags or drink beer behind the school gym.

 

[Unregistered 4U]

well, I don't drink/buy alcohol, but, being in my 60s I detest being"age checked" if I want to buy alcohol, so I am 100% against Apple asking me for my DOB potentially in the future.
There is no easy answer to this, and Meta has been pushing for the App Store "solution" cause they don't know how to handle it ...

Thing is, there IS an easy answer.

 

[dmi]

Meta being in favour of this won’t solve the “problem” for them, at least not for long. Facebook can be accessed on a browser without the App even on a phone.

To all the people supporting this, the next step is user verification on PCs. All these progressive demands are only the thin edge of the wedge.

We see in Britain the end result, government monitoring of all online conversations and coming down very hard on any dissent the current government finds inconvenient.

First Porn, Now Skin Cream? ‘Age Verification’ Bills Are Out of Control

I’m old enough to remember when age verification bills were pitched as a way to ‘save the kids from porn’ and shield them from other vague dangers lurking in the digital world (like…“the transgender”). We have long cautioned about the dangers of these laws, and pointed out why they are likely to...

www.eff.org

 

[Hele]

Notice that Facebook/instagram are for the age verification bs. They can’t wait for their users to be forced to provide govt ID.

 

[russell_314]

During account setup, Apple will ask for the age range of the person using the device,

It’s a really good thing that people don’t lie in the USA.

This is just dumb in my opinion. Short of having to be in person to sign up for an Apple ID with an identification card there’s no way to verify the person‘s age. Are we going to have our Apple ID linked to our drivers license number or Social Security number?

Even if we went through all that trouble, would we have adults buying Apple IDs for minors like they do alcohol? Does that mean we need a bureau of Apps, Tobacco, and Firearms to catch these heathens?

I don’t think the state or Apple should be in charge of protecting children from apps. I think this is a parent thing. I realize there are so many absentee parents out there, but I feel like Apple is going to make a terrible parent for these children.


Maybe with Face ID they can use biometrics to determine age? That’s the only reasonable approach I can see. You can only unlock the App Store with Face ID. Your face scan will determine what apps you’re allowed to download. Any app considered age restricted that’s already installed will require Face ID to access.