So we have a new ‘Online Safety Law’ here in the UK which restricts 18+* content unless you are verified over 18. As with anything Online, Capitalist and government required, there is suddenly an explosion of companies offering age verification (with AI help), and if that wasn’t setting alarms off… well bloody hell.
However, there are some more issues with selective areas.
Reddit:
- Lots of people set their profile to 18+ to stop AI scraper bots harvesting their posts. Now can’t access it to change it.
- Reddit prefers to use WithPersona, who seem to have the right in their Terms of Services to sell Data/training imagery later on.
- Reddit has a lot of niche/helpful communities which this law now blocks/hinders people from help or advice.
Discord
- They use a system called k-ids. It looks very dodgy.
- As a service directed at kids in the first place, getting kids to fail to verify they are adults is a bit backward.
In General
- There is no universal system for all sites to refer to, if there was it’d be worse for breaches and privacy.
- It’s a matter of time before any get hacked, one aimed at the Employment sector already has been hacked and that causes so much problems for those who use it. source
- Apparently people looking for help with addictions or medical issues are being blocked from pages which were set up to help, because they contain terms covered by the ban.
- can be bypassed by pictures of actors, sample driving license pictures from government sites, pictures of fruit, even AI avatars… though I wouldn’t advise trying it.
Why was this brought in?
Basically… Parents.
Sorry, but you haven’t been supervising your kids online since the 90’s. You didn’t even bother to set up Parental Controls.
Now the Government is worried that the Internet (which they haven’t even to attempted to police anyway) has turned everyone against everything.
Meanwhile giving right wing misinformation in the Press a free pass.
What can we do if we’re not happy or the system is broken within months.
Really. That should be your first port of call before it became law. Read up on all of it, can guarantee its so broad that anything later is covered.
*means its not just porn, can also cover addictions, medical references/research, drugs, probably some games, with bigger scope whenever Government decides more undesirable things.