Users accuse Discord of data harvesting, not compliance
2 Sep 22 3:26 PM · 3d ago · 29 articles · 16 posts · 19 comments · 5 sources · development 2 of 5
Social media users and HN commenters pushed back immediately, arguing the system is not legally required in most jurisdictions and questioning why users should trust Discord with any signals after last year's breach.
“Keep in mind that Discord is not legally mandated to implement age verification globally, they are just doing so because they want to harvest as much data as possible”
@DeepHumorDiscord Platform implementing the age-verification systemStanislav Vishnevskiy Discord CTODavid Greene EFF senior counselAgeKey Third-party age-verification vendor used by Discord
The whole story articlespostscomments the bright band is this development · numbered dots are the others · click one to jump
Reported in the same hours no headline names this development itself — these 9 claims were published in its stretch
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first by Engadget, 3d ago · also 80 Level, CyberInsider, Telecompaper, Tech Times
4 more headlines
- Discord Rolls Out New Way to Check Users' Ages 80 Level · 3d ago
- Discord rolls out age checks that don't require an ID or selfie CyberInsider · 3d ago
- Discord rolls out age checks with new verification options Telecompaper · 3d ago
- Discord Rolls Out Revised Age Verification Policy as Call for Limiting Access to Minors Grows Tech Times · 3d ago
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3 outlets Discord's Age Verification Returns
first by GamesMarket, 3d ago · also MakeUseOf, MediaNama
4 more headlines
- After months of backlash, Discord's age-verification system returns with the same basic problem MakeUseOf · 3d ago
- Discord revamps age verification checks PocketGamer.biz · 3d ago
- Discord changes its age verification approach after backlash. What must users prove now? MediaNama · 3d ago
- Discord's age verification era is upon us, despite community backlash | TechCrunch Mastodon · 3d ago
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first by Biometric Update, 3d ago · also Digital Trends
1 more headline
- Discord's controversial age checks are back, but most users won't need to verify manually Digital Trends · 3d ago
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first by The American Bazaar, 3d ago · also Gadget Review
1 more headline
- Discord Is Bringing Back Age Verification for Millions of Users Gadget Review · 3d ago
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2 outlets Safer for Teens, Same Discord for Adults
first by Discord Blog, 3d ago · also Engadget
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first by HotHardware, 3d ago
What people said 24 voices · best of 28 · verbatim
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Keep in mind that Discord is not legally mandated to implement age verification globally, they are just doing so because they want to harvest as much data as possible Handing this company ANY personal information after their massive ID data leak last year is insane
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One major controversy I recall with VRchat's implementation of age assurance (via Persona) is that they retained identity of who you were after completing the process. Not who exactly, but your identity was hashed so that if the same person attempted to verify again they could tell who it is. This effectively meant one individual can have one…
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The problem with monopolies. If there were say 4 decent sized alternatives to Discord then when 1 fucks you they can lose their market share and the other 4 can easily pick up the slack but really Discord wouldn't fuck over their community because of the danger of losing it all to competitors so easily. Monopolies suck.
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Age Verification comes to Discord tomorrow. More options to verify (Apple, Google, Card,). Most ppl won't need to verify (account age, etc.) https://www. resetera.com/threads/1640563 # gaming # videogames # resetera
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Discord is rolling out a new age-assurance system worldwide. >More than 90% of users won't be asked to verify their age. Instead, Discord will estimate whether an account belongs to an adult or teen using signals such as account age, activity and the servers and games it's connected to. >Discord ...
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Discord offers age verification via AgeKey [1]. Reading their privacy policy, one can create multiple AgeKeys based on the same identification or face scan. Each AgeKey is stored as a passkey and not persisted anywhere else. The privacy policy indicates that the identification information is submitted to 3rd party providers, and also appears to be…
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I had a whole bunch of photos on photobucket and I didn’t get any sort of warning. Shit sucked but it is what it is.
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According to Discord, 90% of users will not have to verify their age. https:// techcrunch.com/2026/09/22/disc ords-age-verification-era-is-upon-us-despite-community-backlash/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon
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Privacy goes beyond your messages! Discord is rolling out its revamped age-check system with over 90% of users not expected to need ID verification It estimates users' age groups using signals from their activity and account 🫣 A great reminder of how much metadata can reveal about you.
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> it provides an easier way for pedophiles to identify underage users and provides more doxable information.Do you have any basis for assuming that that users who are under 18 will have that information revealed to other users? That’s not what I read in this article.I also think you’re being quite prescriptive about a private commercial service…
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I do too. At least the gas station crackhead isn’t gonna send my data over to Israel.
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Welp. https:// discord.com/blog/safer-for-tee ns-same-discord-for-adults
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Tomorrow, Discord will place everyone into an age group using account signals. They claim 90% of users won't have to confirm their age. They are also introducing new verification methods if you do need to verify that you are an adult, including Credit Cards and App Stores.
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> "We're launching this over the course of this week, so it may take a few days to reach your account."That's obviously not a technical requirement; they're doing this because they expect a large volume of negative publicity, and temporally staggering this rollout means users are less able to coordinate their social-media outrage.Same logic Reddit…
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Discord is pushing this age verification knowing the danger it could cause to people's privacy Are we gonna forget the 70K ID leaks now? Also adding a payment method for verification just gives hackers another reason to steal accounts
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I totally agree. At the same time, nobody should be using Discord anyway, for a variety of reasons. They're one of the least trustworthy online platforms I can think of, and have unfortunately encouraged online ecosystems where you have to "Join our Discord" in order to maybe be heard. I would be delighted if age verification encourage more people…
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There are several jurisdictions that require companies to ensure that age limits are not bypassed via VPN or anonymizers. This puts the companies in a catch-22, block all VPN and anonymizers access, restricting many people with no recourse, or applying the age rules unilaterally, restricting some teens, but giving recourse to adults using VPNs.It…
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I muse about the disconnect of people terminally online (myself included) and their tendency to assume their position is the overton window centre, and my experiences talking to people in real life about things like mandatory age checks for social systems.I get it. People want to keep their (pseudo)anonymity and details private.I also get it…
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Unacceptable.There is no legitimate reason to impose age verification on users in jurisdictions that do not legally mandate it.It is a risk to the privacy and safety of all users on the platform - it provides an easier way for pedophiles to identify underage users and provides more doxable information.Discord has no business making this decision…
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A long time ago, I'd participate in things like CAcert in-person assurance, PGP key-signing, etc.. I think a model like that would've been useful here: An AgeKey issued/signed by two people. I think of it like a decentralized equivalent to someone's parents saying "Yeah, $CHILD is old enough", or to a cashier saying "This person obviously looks…
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Well, there's a lot more low-hanging fruit there to be had.It was sadly too trivial using various Discord search engines to find things like BDSM servers advertising to "14-28 year olds", or ones where minors openly sell NSFW content.Discord as a whole is oftentimes enabling the communities to prey on those users, not just making the users more…
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>The question here is, does Discord do the same thing for any or all of the selected options? Or is identity data full well and truly purged once the outcome is determined - no hashing, nothing retained other than the result?What they actually do is irrelevant since none of these companies should ever be trusted to do what they claim they will do.
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There was a brief window where you could submit fake biometrics through a third-party site to verify age on Discord, pretty sure I got the link from hackernews.That made me feel better that Discord didn't need to store my ID or video of my face, and was only storing the results of some analysis and not the inputs.
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Given Persona is involved (and thus also Thiel and Palantir) expect everything to be store for ever, sold for profit and misused agains you in the worst way possible.
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