Reddit announced today that it has started verifying UK users' ages before letting them "view certain mature content" in order to comply with the country's Online Safety Act.
Reddit said that users "shouldn't need to share personal information to participate in meaningful discussions," but that it will comply with the law by verifying age in a way that protects users' privacy. "Using Reddit has never required disclosing your real world identity, and these updates don't change that," Reddit said.
Reddit said it contracted with the company Persona, which "performs the verification on either an uploaded selfie or a photo of your government ID. Reddit will not have access to the uploaded photo, and Reddit will only store your verification status along with the birthdate you provided so you won't have to re-enter it each time you try to access restricted content."
Reddit said that Persona made promises about protecting the privacy of data. "Persona promises not to retain the photo for longer than 7 days and will not have access to your Reddit data such as the subreddits you visit," the Reddit announcement said. "Your birthdate is never visible to other users or advertisers, and is used to support safety features and age-appropriate experiences on Reddit."
Reddit provided more detail on how the age verification works here, and a list of what content is restricted here. For UK users under 18, Reddit said it has to restrict sexually explicit content; content that promotes suicide, deliberate self-injury, and eating disorders; content that incites abuse or hatred against people based upon protected characteristics; bullying content; content that promotes violence or "depicts real or realistic serious violence against a person, an animal, or a fictional creature"; content that promotes challenges or stunts that are likely to cause serious injuries; content that encourages people to use harmful substances or substances in harmful quantities; content that shames people based on body type or physical features; and "content that promotes or romanticizes depression, hopelessness and despair."
Ofcom says law just the “first step”
UK regulatory agency Ofcom sent a statement to media in response to Reddit's announcement. Ofcom noted that the compliance deadline is July 25.
"Society has long protected youngsters from products that aren't suitable for them, from alcohol to smoking or gambling," Ofcom said. "Now, children will be better protected from online material that's not appropriate for them, while adults' rights to access legal content are preserved. We expect other companies to follow suit, or face enforcement if they fail to act."
Ofcom said online platforms that fall under the law "must use highly effective age assurance to identify which users are children, to protect them from harmful material, while preserving adults' rights to access legal content. That may involve preventing children from accessing the entire site or app, or only some parts or kinds of content."
Ofcom Group Director for Online Safety Oliver Griffiths recently told the Daily Star that "if you're a dedicated teenager, you're probably going to be able to find ways to get [around this] in the same way as people manage to find their way in the pub to buy alcohol at under 18." But he indicated that the law should prevent many kids from "stumbling across porn," and that "this is very much a first step."
In the US, individual states have been imposing age laws on porn websites. The US Supreme Court recently upheld a Texas law that requires age verification on porn sites, finding that the state's age-gating law doesn't violate the First Amendment. A dissent written by Justice Elena Kagan described the law's ID requirement as a deterrent to exercising one's First Amendment rights, saying that "Texas's law defines speech by content and tells people entitled to view that speech that they must incur a cost to do so."
While the Texas law applies to websites in which more than one-third of the content is sexual material, the UK law's age provisions apply more broadly to social media websites. Reddit's announcement of its UK restrictions said the company expects it will have to verify user ages in other countries.
"As laws change, we may need to collect and/or verify age in places other than the UK," Reddit said. "Accordingly, we are also introducing globally an option for you to provide your birthdate to optimize your Reddit experience, for example to help ensure that content and ads are age-appropriate. This is optional, and you won't be required to provide it unless you live in a place (like the UK) where we are required to ask for it." Reddit said the option will be available in a user's account settings, but will not roll out to all users immediately.
Disclosure: Advance Publications, which owns Ars Technica parent Condé Nast, is the largest shareholder in Reddit.
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