Source: https://infosec.exchange/users/isotopp/statuses/115059833470035521
Transcript
Age Verification
Due to applicable UK laws, websites must verify the age of visitors using official ID to confirm they are at least 18 years old. We are a small site and unfortunately do not have the resources to implement such a system, so we are unable to serve users in the UK.
We are not required to verify your location, so please confirm below:
[I am not in the UK] [I am in the UK]
I recently looked through the requirements on Ofcom’s website, and to me it sounded like every email service falls well into their “user to user communication” category, which would have to “assess the risks”. It’s not really different than communicating in an internet forum, except it’s not public, but that’s not really a factor i think. Sending porn via email is probably as old as email itself.
Email providers cant moderate their users’ mails (i mean they could try, but that would likely be the end of them for the obvious breach in privacy). And having people have to age-verify for an email account would be ludicrous, especially considering children need emails for school, etc.
I wonder if they ever clarified anything about email services and how they would or would not be affected by this bullshit law.
You can get porn in a google image search, even in the UK. No ID or login required. I did see a comment about it not applying to search engines, which really does make you wonder what is the fucking point!!
Tracking and spying on the population.
Removed by mod
So a company can collect copies of everyone’s ID cards.
The UK doesn’t have ID cards.
Are you sure about that?
The UK seems to have passports and drivers licenses. Screenshots from the age verification dialog boxes on websites allow you to verify your age with an ID card, because they do exist.
How are they verifying age? Which offical ID are they requiring?
Passport or drivers licence, those are the only two options here.
That’s two different forms of official ID card.
My point is that neither is an ID card per se, both are only available to a subset of the population (those who leave the country, and those who can drive), and both are significantly more expensive than a dedicated ID card would probably be.
There was a trial of a UK ID card in the 2010s. They didn’t take off. They’ve all expired now.
That’s the same as the US, then. No national card. But we all know and use our local ID and passport as ID.
Door to door mail could be considered user to user too. Oh wait, I shouldn’t give them ideas.
No