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It is for parents to raise their children. Not platforms.

The European Age Verification App is ready.

It will allow users to prove their age when accessing online platforms. Just like shops ask for proof of age for people buying alcoholic beverages.

And it ticks all the boxes:
✅ Highest privacy standards in the world
✅ Works on any device
✅ Easy to use
✅ Fully open source

More info: link.europa.eu/HmnrJc

reshared this

in reply to European Commission

Can you guarantee the age information doesn't get stored?
Can you guarantee the age information isn't tied to identity?
If you can't guarantee the first, then it's not equivalent to "showing the physical ID" (the physical ID isn't copied/written down in the process)
If you can't guarantee the second, then you're not doing age verification but ownership verification/identity verification which is a different task.

Moreover:
"It is for parents to raise their children."
Then make sure parents have safe environment to do so. This means not needing them to work 24/7, losing their mind to stress so they have time to do parenting which is in fact a full-time job that can't be offloaded to anything or anyone else.

Right now the only thing you and many other "Liberal" administrations are doing is an equivalent of "building a kid's corner in a minefield" or "marking a minefield 'Adults Only'".

reshared this

in reply to Rachel Lawson

@rachel

That's easier said than done, and these are legitimate questions.

The point of asking them is to find out if the EU will stand behind commitments to those principles, guided by subject experts, not to find out if the current codebase just happens (in the best judgement of one possibly-inexpert person doing a quick review of a large amount of material).

@rawenwolf @EUCommission @Lazarou

in reply to RawiWoof

@rawenwolf
I've had a closer look at the code repository if anyone is interested?

PART 1: mastodon.social/@DazRunner/116…

PART 2: mastodon.social/@DazRunner/116…

in reply to RawiWoof

@rawenwolf so I worked on the law for digital ID, and one of the elements in the law is enabling zero-knowledge proof. This means there should be a way for someone to attest to something about themselves with our actually having to reveal any of their personal information.

I'm wondering if this is the first actual implementation of that. If so it is extremely privacy-friendly: no personal data is shared.

in reply to Jordan Maris 🇪🇺 🇺🇦 #NAFO

@jmaris
If it's being done with zero-knowledge proof in mind, then I'm somewhat reassured that it should be harder to abuse (still not 100% sure but at least not panic mode). It of course doesn't solve the social issues but that's a different field.

It'd be better to make the ZKP mandatory so there's the privacy-preserving layer. Sadly can't check the code for this myself since I don't possess the necessary CyberSec expertise (I could at most check if there's no side-channel that could leak the ID information).

Happy to get feedback from a person directly involved with the work :vlpn_happy:

in reply to Trash Panda

@raccoon no, the EU app just reads the age information of your ID or passport. It's open source, any programmer can check it's realy this way. Maximal security, maximal privacy, maximal transparency!

Or you realy want your children to grow up watching hardcore rape scenes just clicking "are you 18 yo and older? Yes or no?" on portals, thinking this is normal?

This solution is a small compromise and doesn't hurt!

in reply to Aral Balkan

@aral @raccoon ouch! You have a PIN for your E-ID. It's not enough to put your card on your RFID - Reader. How can the bank know it's you drawing cash on an ATM?

If you let your bank card lying around with your PIN, that's stupid, cause you shouldn't wonder of your bank account is empty then!

With an E-ID AND your PIN someone can do a lot of crazy stuff. Like doing a tax return for you or report you falsly unemployed!

in reply to SummerOf68

I want parents to be parents and take care of what kids do.
It's up to parents to do the parenting and set parental control on their routers and devices.
It's not up to the EU.

And yeah it's open source, but we don't know if what they add stuff when they release the apk

If I was an alcohol drinker I wouldn't leave the alcohol cabinet open.
Same with my router, just like I can lock the alcohol cabinet I can put blocks on the router.

in reply to SummerOf68

@SummerOf68 @raccoon
>Or you realy want your children to grow up watching hardcore rape scenes just clicking "are you 18 yo and older? Yes or no?" on portals, thinking this is normal?

If your kid decides to do that and you didn't put any barriers for your kid to do that, it is only your fault and you can blame only yourself as a failed parent. Period.

in reply to Phantasm

@phnt @raccoon wrong, you live in Lalaland kids can be controled whole day and don't look for ways to pass parents control.
That's the reason children can't buy alcohol or tabaco, a practice that's usual and nobody discusses. If the seller don't want to sell, cause you look to young, you have to show your ID. Nobody questions this!
in reply to SummerOf68

@SummerOf68
My children doesn't have unlimited, unsupervised internet access, and are teach the risk that exist on it.

Because parents doesn't want to educate their children and prefer let them alone with screens all dayand us/chinese-based monopoly do their education, all people must now be tracked and identified ... with solutions which do absolutely nothing about the problem (which exist from _before_ internet, but doesn't seems at this age to track everyone)

Theses solutions will then be used then abused for absolutely all. Fiest porn, after social network. Then shopping, union and blog

@raccoon

in reply to Vinnie (any)

@greenWhale @raccoon oh, it was such fun, to read all your crazy, stupid, messed up thoughts and conspiracy theories, that have nothing to do with the minds of sane and responsible adults!

Who seeks compromises with such delusions?
I just found the inmates obviously ran away from a psychiatric Institution womiting their crazy thoughts and their paranoia under some good news from the EU comission about youth protection!

And after enjoying the entertainment, I now block anyone of you! 🤣

in reply to Vinnie (any)

@greenWhale @SummerOf68 @raccoon infact the entire fucking purpose is to disregard consent and autonomy, it treats children as property that their parents are allowed to decide what they access, denying them and also discriminate against people who cant access an ID in the process, while justifying the whole thing with 'think of the children'
This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to SummerOf68

@SummerOf68 @raccoon you raise your kids, I'll raise mine. Kids have been seeing ugly stuff forever. There is nothing delivered on a computer screen that will hurt a child. If they are mature enough to find it, they are mature enough to cope with it. If that terrifies you, supervise them at your expense, not mine.

Trashing anonymity online is the precursor to prosecuting thought crime.

in reply to SummerOf68

@SummerOf68

Hardcore rape scenes are not on legitimate sites that will comply with these age verification laws. Rape, death and violence videos are on illegitimate websites though, which won't comply with age verification. This law will TRY to keep kids away from moderated legitimate websites, into illegitimate websites with all the nastiest videos imaginable available.

@raccoon

in reply to SummerOf68

@SummerOf68 @raccoon I watched porn at 15. It's normal. Porn has been a part of human society for thousands of years and as far as I am aware it is a healthy outlet for sexual desires, which kids will have. Obviously there are problems, but this is not a good solution.

None of this is to mention how I'm sure this will be used to restrict access to resources for LGBT kids and create frictions that platforms will use to make everything worse.

in reply to SummerOf68

@SummerOf68 @raccoon
ignoring the fact its just digital border control and can/will be used for regional lockout and DRM purposes:
tech.lgbt/@Li/1164193254438346… (as it already is in places that use it-)

but like it hurts people without ID .. as it is designed too do,

in reply to Earthworm 🐌

@earthworm interestingly this proposal does actually offer a response to the concerns raised. Although I still disagree with age verification on social grounds, the approach taken here (zero-knowledge proof: the site doesn't get any personal info, only an assurance you are over 18) is much better for privacy than any of the alternatives.
in reply to European Commission

An age verification app's back end is arguably just as important as the front end. No word on that yet.

And it goes without saying that nothing apart from the boolean "is user older than x" should be shared with a platform.

Curious to see how this plays out. Platforms wanting age verification shouldn't have to rely on infamous contractors that leak data.

But everyone is aware of the slippery slope: IDing everyone on the web isn't something we'll let happen without pushback.

@EUCommission

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

can't wait to try on my PostMarketOS phone, running just Linux (no Android, no iOS) and if genuinely it "✅️ Works on any device".

I honestly hope so but until I can attest it I'll remain skeptical of that claim.

Also it's not open source until we can see the code. Making a statement without a link to the repository with the license is simply wrong.

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to Merlin Makes

Trans people can't safely use identifying documents, especially in jurisdictions that mandate misgendered ones. Trans people are just one case in point. Identifying documents exist for the purpose of marking people for life. In the bad old days, for example, birth certificates documenting out-of-wedlock births would be stamped "illegitimate."

n8chz 🩎 reshared this.

in reply to European Commission

Dear @HennaVirkkunen , I would like to report a 76-year-old man who should obviously not be left unsupervised on the internet and then spread Russian slopaganda to our entire Union. Can we adjust the app settings for this demographic?

Thanks.

mastodon.social/@eunews/116404…


Polish opposition admits leader wrong to suggest Hungarian PM-elect killed puppy in microwave

Jarosław Kaczyński, the leader of Poland’s opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party, today suggested that Hungary’s incoming prime minister, Péter Magyar, killed a puppy in a microwave, repeating a false and widely debunked online claim.

notesfrompoland.com/2026/04/14…


This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

look I'm glad you guys considered privacy, that the app is opensource, etc, but to me it seems both unnecessary and dangerous, it's a whole new system that can fail and leak in its own ways, and this puts the burden of identifying on EVERYONE instead of the controls with parents that should be keeping an eye on their kids.

I don't have kids, and now every website is going to ask me personal details. No thanks. I guess I'll just selfhost everything then, just like the kids would?

reshared this

in reply to Anthropy

@anthropy
Better than the alternatives, investigated the code and documentation bit that it was in it's design safe, if everything follows the design, I found 2 points of failure that could store data without permission, the initial registration step, gotta trust them to not store the data if you don't use something like BankID, second one is the checker, gotta trust it to not store your key (even if it's anonymized, it's consistent). May have changed since I checked.

Should not store shit like the US companies, the anonymous ID database should not be storing any personal info from what I saw.

Big minus for relying on the Google Play API instead of the generic that works on GrapheneOS etc, at least when I last checked. It's reliant on a US company using that.

Not needed in the first place my opinion tho, hopefully it's just a non-corporate decentralized option IF a country decides to add those laws.

in reply to European Commission

For the record I never installed the Covid app you talk about in the link.

And I am also a parent. There's a simple way not to have kids on social media: give them a dumbphone instead of a smartphone.
And set up parental control on their devices.

If you wanted to do something meaningful you should have regulated all services and telecom providers to include advanced rules for parental controls.

#AgeVerification #EUPol

in reply to European Commission

No, it's not just like shops.

1. The shop keeps no record.
2. The shop only asks those that look young,

On the internet, any age verification results in everyone's details being stored and most of the companies are not trustworthy. The info will be sold or leaked.
It will be used for surveillance.

"It is for parents to raise their children. Not platforms."
So do no age verification. OTOH hold web sites and apps to the same standards as TV, Radio, billboards & print.
Fine them!

in reply to European Commission

Nicht schon wieder die Kinder bei eurem Mist vorschieben. Ich kann das langsam nicht mehr hören.

Haltet ihr uns als Eltern nicht für mündig genug? Aber kann es sein, dass es euch vielleicht gar nicht darum geht, sondern nur um mehr Kontrolle?

Wie komme ich jetzt bloß auf solche Gedanken? 🤔

Bin auch sehr gespannt, wie die App dann so auf einem Linux-Phone läuft. Geht ja angeblich überall. 🐧 📱

in reply to European Commission

Being able to authoritatively prove adulthood without revealing any other personal information is a useful capability. However, age-gating the Internet is a terrible idea that risks accelerating surveillance and removing the human right to privacy in digital spaces.

A better solution: fund education of parents on digital risks and tools, education of children on digital literacy, and promotion of on-device parental controls. The obligation here is the guardian’s.

in reply to Jeremiah Lee

@Jeremiah
Indeed.

#EFF @eff have a useful piece (dated 1 year ago) on the #AgeVerificationApp of the #EuropeanUnion and more globally on #AgeVerification mandates, although an update with the current implementation choices would be welcome.

eff.org/deeplinks/2025/04/age-…

in reply to European Commission

"It is for parents to raise their children. Not platforms."

Then don't make a damn app and leave parents and kids alone. It is that simple. You could instead:
- Raise awareness of privacy and security issues for kids (and users, in general).
- Educate kids in schools about responsable use of electronic devices.
- Just ban roblox and other pedo-infested platforms. Seriously. Predators don't hide in signal DMs precisely.
- Start reducing dependency on foreign private digital platforms that ARE out of your control and don't care about sanctions.
- Invest more resources on secure and free software that you can actually control.

#ageverification #FOSSwashing

in reply to European Commission

Today's not 1st of April. You're trying to enter our chats, profiles and track us online, make the web worse and more dangerous that it needs to be. You want control without a real reason apart capitalism and power.

Tell us why you did this. Tell us why we need it. Tell us it's the best you can think of. Tell us the science that can backup this choice. Show us scientific data that proves that this solution is the better one. 1/X

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to dunklecat

Disclose the ones that will really benefit from this, all of them. Tell us everything. And then, and only then, we will be able to talk about this. Don't think we're stupid. Don't think we're going to be silent about this. Don't think you know more than we do. We know what our children need. We know what our children wants. And we have some ideas about why you need less privacy, less security and more power over us.

2/X

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

So to everyone replying here
I know this just asks for mockery and outrage. Rightly so. But be sure noone with actual weight will read any comments you leave here You can ask europe direct for clarification about any concerns you might have here: european-union.europa.eu/conta…, or check for other forms of contact here: commission.europa.eu/about/con…
If you want to complain it then do as I did, and at least direct your complaints somewhere they will possibly be read.
in reply to European Commission

@European Commission

Because we will have zero tolerance for companies that do not respect our children's rights. And this is why we are moving ahead with full speed and determination on the enforcement of our European rules. We are holding accountable those online platforms that do not protect our kids enough.

🤣 really? This is ridiculous. You don't hold platforms accountable for the bad they do to society. You have a lot of tolerance for companies that does not respect children's and adults human rights. Everybody knows that all this system was not developed to "help children" but to track citizens in future updates.

in reply to European Commission

Because no link to the application was posted, I assume its this github.com/eu-digital-identity… & github.com/eu-digital-identity….

Either way, Age Verification on the Internet as a concept is dangerous and many scientists have warned of it already in an open-letter.

We don't need Age Verification technology to protect children, we need regulation of big tech to reign in on maliciously created algorithms and practices.

And don't weaken the protections we already have with Omnibus.

This time around it's an L for you, EU.

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

❓ "Highest privacy standards in the world"

You have merely claimed to have done threat modeling in the course of an "internal design process". To this day, you haven't published any related documents. "Trust me" and vague assertions don't prove anything.

What is currently published, though, rather diminishes trust, like your "important note" on PINs:

»To enhance security, it is strongly recommended that the allowed PINs raise the overall security level. Sequential or easily guessable patterns (such as "135246 or "147258") should not be permitted. Additionally, it is advisable to check against a list of the most commonly used or "pwned" PINs to prevent users from choosing weak credentials.«

❌ "Works on any device"

"To enable online age verification, the User is required to install an AV app on their mobile device."

You have openly stated in 2025 already (and bluntly closed the related issue on GitHub as "completed"): "The project is currently focused on mobile platforms, specifically Android and iOS, as these cover the vast majority of end users and use cases. Desktop support is not in the current scope of the project, but we will take this suggestion on board."

No desktops, no de-googled phones.

That is: you are lying straight to our faces, here.

❓ "Easy to use"

Again, from your current "important note":

»This white-label application is a reference implementation of the Age Verification solution that should be customised before publishing it. The current version is not feature complete and will require further integration work before production deployment.«

How is ease of use, let alone accessibility, tested for a "white-label application [sic]" that isn't even customized?

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

Dear #Zensursula,

fixed that for you:

"It is for parents to raise their children. Not the total #surveillance state. But since we don't care for children and use this sentimental bs only as cover up for our totalitarian dream:

The European #BigBrother App is ready.

It will allow us to follow your every step. Every move you make. We'll be watching you.

Just like China asks for proof of good behavior for people trying to access services like finance, travel or entertainment."

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

"They are personal digital wallets that allow citizens to digitally identify themselves, store and manage identity data and official documents in electronic format. These documents may include a driving licence, medical prescriptions or education qualifications. Thanks to the wallet, all citizens will be able to prove their identity where necessary to access services online, to share digital documents, or simply to prove a specific personal attribute" 🤨🤐🫣

digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/…

in reply to European Commission

#Linux support? Where is the actual link to the source code repository?

That being said, age verification is a terrible idea and I'm saying that as a parent of kids in the age bracket that you are so worried about! Regulate the huge social media corporations properly instead of acting like they're only problematic for minors.

I fear you'll just end up killing Linux on the desktop or smaller online forums or similar.

in reply to European Commission

If "it is for the parents to raise their children", why do we have an ID verification app?

It is open-source, but is the back-end?

Highest privacy standard?
With #digitalomnibus I doubt that.

Just do not interfere with the privacy and usability of internet due to incompetent parents.

Also, what use doea ID verification app have when parents can it so their child can access the net?
Or the children using it without the knowledge of their parent?

in reply to European Commission

Why is it not open source? You published the interoperable Europe Act. You published an open source strategy and have an open source programme office. Experts could easily verify it, it would be easy integrate-able in European software and help non-European countries to establish a secure, privacy-preserving, non-tracking own app.

@EC_OSPO

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

Do you understand what you are doing? What freedoms you are quietly eroding? What for?

There is nothing more private then just having NO IDAV in place.
I dont trust you to keep my data safe just as I dont trust anyone.

It is obvious you want to protect children from harm, but what is verification of age now, is soon gonna be "passport please", and then you get arrested for a opinion on the internet.

Welcome to North Korea.

in reply to European Commission

Age verification is not a "good idea" for anyone.
It doesn't stop youngsters from accessing ' illegal" sites, they will find a way around it, but what these laws do accomplish is:

- Everyone, will have to upload their official ID on the internet, thus exposing all *your* personal information to hackers via data leaks.

*Your ID* can then be used to do all sorts of fraudulent activities, and *you* will be responsible for untangling the mess -- it will take years , plus you will be forced to pay out all legal fees, not the website or the government.

Additionally, because the government can monitor every keystroke from your computer or other device, you could be penalized for your opinion....not to mention I don't want to live in a dictatorship like North Korea, China, or Russia --censorship is terrible for democracy.

-kids will learn how to become 'hackers' in order to circumvent law so, I ask you how does this improve the life of children or yourself?

reshared this

in reply to European Commission

you guys might want to read this thread: cosocial.ca/@mhoye/11640871041…


Age verification is a deliberate attack on system sovereignty, both for individuals and countries. There’s no “age verifcation”, there is only “identity verification that includes age”, and the system doing that verification is not just a privacy-invasive user tracking system but a remotely controlled off switch for anyone of any age.

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

Please stop publishing lies about this.

The code WILL NOT run on ANY device.

My primary phone is a recently purchased 4G dumb phone with no internet capabilities and RAM measured in megabytes.

It is a device.

It does what I need it to do and I expect to get ten years worth of use out of it.

I cannot install any apps on it.

Who will make this code run on my dumb phone so that I am not forced to buy a smartphone with an OS developed in the US?

#digitalsovereignty

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

From the EU statement "Social media platforms offer highly addictive designs – infinite scrolling that is feeding the addiction, short videos snap attention span, highly personalised content, targeted. "

So fix the bloody platforms that harm our children first.

Making adults compensate for a lack of regulation by the EU of the digital market place by forcing them to constantly ID themselves is addressing the wrong set of issues.

#digitalsovereignty #surveillance #chatcontrol

in reply to European Commission

This renders internet services unusable for adults as well! Why would I trust my personal data to a random BigTech company?
And no, no adult looking like an adult is asked to provide an ID when buying alcohol. And even if, this data would not be stored somewhere.

Please try to solve the problem at the root and control THEM (Big Tech), not us! You have the DSA, please enforce it!

in reply to European Commission

It is high time you lot stopped using children as an excuse for this censorship you call "age verification". Implementing age checks will only serve to drive bullying underground where it cannot be seen. The ultimate end of this policy is a society like the Soviet Union or East Germany, where everyone is under constant surveillance and anyone deemed inconvenient is taken to a basement and shot.
in reply to European Commission

Great news! I really feared, that we have to deal with a proprietary app only for Windows, Android, or iOS.

Could you please link to the actual #sourceCode, so that I can start to package the app for #Debian? (Or at least file an #RFP request for package?)

#freeSoftware #openSource

This entry was edited (4 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

“We already know that the online ecosystem is porous, insecure and routinely subject to data breaches,” said Aaron Mackey, deputy legal director of the nonprofit Electronic Frontier Foundation. “So why would we, then, in the name of protecting people, create a whole other legal mandate that requires the collection and storage of even more personally identifying information that would be subject to either data thieves or data breaches?”
in reply to European Commission

politico.eu/article/europe-sho…
in reply to European Commission

shame on you. All child protection groups are screaming that it's a terrible idea. You're pushing children towards the dark web, you're taking their safe spaces, preventing them from learning to navigate the world of information (until 18 when they're magically no longer vulnerable). And we all have to pay for this with our privacy.

If you want to protect kids, fix the climate change and control American social networks - for everyone.

in reply to European Commission

Has anyone considered what this technology can also be used for? Like governments or websites saying "You need to verify that you are not of [religion of choice] belief." Or "Verify that your name does not sound foreign."
Age verification, even with zero knowledge proofs is a dangerous precedent to set, as it locks down the internet by default and that is the dream for any authoritarian.
Instead dear @EUCommission why not defend the free internet? As you said: "It is for parents to raise their children." Just sign into law that minors are only allowed to be given devices with child protection mode by heir parents and leave the rest of us the hell alone.
in reply to European Commission

IMHO, this approach will fail. Whatever runs on your device, especially if open source, you can manipulate at will. So there will be replacements for this App that allow you to enter any age.

Australia already shows that teenagers don't let them stop that easily.

Next step therefore will be to enforce age verification by restricting users' power and freedom over their own devices, and/or communicating back to some state/company controlled infrastructure.

#FreeSoftware #Freedom

in reply to European Commission

...but it only works with american proprietary phones so since I have an European phone I guess I am considered underage now.

What a way to throw privacy out the window. To exclude yet again children and teenagers from society, until the day we throw them inside without warning. To throw the one and best rule of the internet that gave us true liberty and made it great: never give your identity. And to help pirates have more data to steal (we know how government protects our data, we are used to being defenceless against it).

But wait its open-source !

in reply to European Commission

Now do IQ verification for car drivers.

Ten years ago I observed texting while driving once or twice daily. Today I'd be surprised if my observations go below 50% of the drivers. It's absurd we allow morons to operate death machines; unfortunately our "economy" is highly car centric.

@EUCommission #CarCentrism #FuckCars

in reply to European Commission

So if this is the only planned implementation: if a European citizen wants to use an European website to communicate with other European people, he/she needs to buy special devices, involve an US operator for verification and there are no local, sovereign options like using a id card and NFC, relying on the cards cryptographic security rather than regulating the communication devices?
in reply to European Commission

will LGBTQ+ kids have to prove their age to read about who they are? Will everyone have to prove their age to read the news as there may be disturbing images? Will the legislative processes by age gated when discussing laws on sexual abuse, including abuse of children? Will refuge centres have contact details hidden because of the trauma they discuss? Will we need to identify ourselves to look at Michelangelo's David? Or to learn about Auschwitz?
in reply to European Commission

This app still requires a Device ID from Apple of Google. Apple and Google control which apps enter their stores and can impose requirements on the implementation of age verification. This gives them indirect influence over how the EU app functions, which undermines the EU’s digital sovereignty. When will the EU finally start to address the real root cause of these privacy issues?
in reply to Nicole Parsons

@Npars01
I've gotta disagree

Sure, age verification can be implemented terribly. It can empower fascist techbros.

But as a concept, it is a critical part of public safety when done right.

Think of IRL, where thousands of foods, medicines, products and services have 3 layers of regulation - some things are banned, some are age gated and some are allowed but regulated.

We need to accept that reality and find a way to safely implement in the online world.

in reply to TC Won't Give In To Lies

@TCatInReality
Fair points.

The problem is that Meta, Google, Oracle, Amazon, and Palantir are squabbling to privatize age verification in American hands.

Does anyone trust these Trump donors with confidential information?

As the fiasco with Musk's DOGE proved, these folks don't adopt even rudimentary precautions to prevent data theft.

npr.org/2026/01/23/nx-s1-56841…

thehill.com/opinion/white-hous…

brookings.edu/articles/privacy…

The state surveillance platform these dopes want is international.

Nicole Parsons reshared this.

in reply to Nicole Parsons

@Npars01
All true.

But the same companies are also pushing an online libertarian movement to avoid regulation and accountability.

These are huge corporations who work both sides of every issue and take gains wherever they can.

If we are to break free of their oligarchy, we need to avoid either set of their talking points - while demanding nuanced, effective and independent safety measures.

Sure age verification can be problematic. Let's work on better solutions like the EU's

Nicole Parsons reshared this.

in reply to Nicole Parsons

Privatization makes it *even worse* (fascist US corporations getting access to lucrative data including data on children, whom they will use it to harm!), but it's fundamentally bad regardless of whether it's a private party or government doing the" verification".

It is particularly an assault on queer and non-neurotypical children who likely do not have community or acceptance locally in-person and who are stripped or any hope of having community or acceptance when you age-gate the spaces on the internet where they can find it.

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to TC Won't Give In To Lies

@TCatInReality @Npars01 There is fundamentally no way to implement it not-badly. "Age verification" inherently entails identity verification. The claims that it doesn't are a lie. And it also inherently involves infringement of children's rights to knowledge, community, and participation in society.
in reply to Cassandrich

@dalias @TCatInReality @Npars01 Good arguments for and against...

And...

Since there are privacy concerns either way...

This is only a debate because there is a fight to a right to have access to extractive online platforms...

Why use them at all? 🙃

There was life and messy childhood long before the techbros.

in reply to Taran Rampersad

@knowprose @TCatInReality @Npars01 No, there are not "good arguments for". The argument for is that they want to let the abusive tech bros keep operating harmful platforms and wash their hands of liability for harm to children.

But that's bullshit to begin with, because the vast majority of the harm to children that comes from these platforms doesn't even depend on children using them! It comes from their parents or their parents' generation using them.

Denying them vaccines, robbing them of a livable world because they've been brainwashed into right wing cults, etc.

in reply to Cassandrich

This is not "a fight to a right to have access to extractive online platforms". Nobody wants that.

It's a fight for any access at all, to any sort of community. These laws are pushed by the extractive platforms. They're not going to be like "oh, ok, you kids can just go to Mastodon". That would destroy their grip on the market extending into the next generations.

Instead they're like "Join Facebook Kids, certified safe with age verification where you can't meet scary strangers who might tell you it's ok to be queer. Oh, Mastodon has those, so it's illegal now unless it submits to our age verification mandates."

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to Cassandrich

@dalias @TCatInReality @Npars01
I am in agreement about the proxy harm.

Yet my point remains. Everyone seems to assume the platforms must be used.

If people don't use the platforms, this becomes a non-issue.

Consent begins with the decision to use the platform... or not.

If anything, raising the bar for people to make that choice is good.

knowprose.com/2026/03/the-pudd…

in reply to Taran Rampersad

@knowprose @TCatInReality @Npars01 Any argument that starts with "if everyone would just..." is a non-starter. The only way you can get everyone not to use the abusive extractive platforms is to ban them.

And they are not going to stop trying to take away children's rights to community and acceptance and knowledge even if you do try to do that.

in reply to Cassandrich

@dalias @TCatInReality @Npars01 1/ effectively, that is what the law is doing if you really care about privacy.

I cannot find it in myself to argue that children should harm themselves in any way.

And for or against age verification seems the wrong thing to be arguing because of that.

We have enough societal problems with adults using the platform, don't we?

Attempting to raise the stakes for self-interest is the only thing a government can appear to do.

in reply to Taran Rampersad

@knowprose @TCatInReality @Npars01 For fucks sake do you not care? This law will kill queer kids. This law will condemn NNT kids to be treated like there's something wrong with them and they have no hope of having meaningful social relationships. This law will make our community here an illegal resistance.

And here you are being like "I don't care I don't think you should fight it because Facebook is bad."

It's Facebook who wants this law.

in reply to Cassandrich

@dalias @TCatInReality @Npars01 the point is that I do care.

I care enough to suggest that no one should be using the platforms.

And i am doing it on... Mastodon.

Caring is not my issue. I've written a lot about centralized social media.

I care enough to say that this becomes a moot point if people stop acting like the platforms involved need to be defended when they are harmful in and of themselves.

Consent begins with use.

in reply to Taran Rampersad

@knowprose @TCatInReality @Npars01 If you care that no one uses their platforms you would not arguing that we should allow extreme harm to people we care about to give them a get-out-of-jail-free card.

The reason Facebook wants this law is so they can keep doing the harms they're doing with impunity by disclaiming liability for the harms to children.

in reply to Taran Rampersad

@dalias @TCatInReality @Npars01 2/ all this time, energy, outrage and passion could be doing something else if people looked to their own self-interest.

There are so many reasons not to use the platforms in the first place. At the base of it, extraction.

Meanwhile, in the US, FISA just got extended for 10 days. The Trump administration wants 18 months.

And because of where the companies are, it impacts all those online platforms.

I don't agree with age verification because of

in reply to Taran Rampersad

@dalias @TCatInReality @Npars01 3/ the privacy issues, and I don't agree with using those platforms for privacy issues and the attention, intention and influence economies that extract (privacy).

So... why not just not worry about age verification if you ain't gonna use it, and explain the privacy issues to the kids?

They're smarter than most adults about this stuff.

in reply to Taran Rampersad

@knowprose @TCatInReality @Npars01 Not going to use what? The internet? 🤦 🤡

"Why don't you worry about this other thing instead?" is always an invalid argument. We can work on both. We can let the people who deeply care about and understand particular issues put that care and understanding to use.

A better question is this: Why do you think spending your time arguing on the internet to disempower people fighting back is appropriate?

in reply to Taran Rampersad

@knowprose @TCatInReality @Npars01 You're the one who chose to use my activist reply into the EU Commission thread as an invitation to inject your anti-children's-rights propaganda up in my @'s.

I didn't even realize you were following me and that's how you got into the conversation, but now my consent for you to do that is revoked. You're blocked.

in reply to European Commission

Okay I'll bite, in the UK (Scotland) even in my mid thirties I fell foul of the challenge 25 laws. So I carried the easier to replace ID which I had to carry when driving. My driving license.

I'd often get challenged. Which meant I had to show my ID with my home address to a total stranger. When the check out guy was a man it felt unsafe

As someone who's been stalked, it's not safe showing that information to a complete stranger. Let alone an untrustworthy org like Europol.

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

Age Verification Apps will do zero to help keep children safe. If a technology is being heavily lobbied by Mark Zuckerberg at Meta and Sam Altman at OpenID is a big red flag. Didn't you learn anything from Brexit and the Cambridge Analytica scandal!!!

If you really want to keep children safe you would keep pressure on the US to release the Epstein files and prosecute all the pedophiles involved in it.

in reply to European Commission

Liars!

Here, i'll fix it for you:

It has nothing to do with children. It doesn't help children. It doesn't help parents raise any children.
❌ Made to render any kind of privacy impossible
❌ Works on almost no device
❌ Impossible to use, without ties to unethical big tech apple and google
✅ Fully open source

edit: reported for deliberately and knowingly spreading misinformation.

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

The proposal raises fundamental concerns that remain unanswered.

The comparison to offline age checks is misleading: online verification is inherently scalable, leaves digital traces, and can enable tracking.

In practice, this is not just age verification, but a layer of digital identification with clear risks of future expansion.

BTW, where is the evidence that age verification actually improves children’s safety?

in reply to European Commission

works on any device ❌ - only Android, Apple with corresponding accounts, so yes vendor lock in and platform dependent.

Highest privacy standards in the world ❌ - Not really, considering it requires face scanning. Also only pseudonymity no anonymity is guaranteed, so the same platform can easily link transactions.

What's the point in building another US-dependency that doesn't even solve any problems, as it's obviously not enforceable and also trivial to circumvent.

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to onterof

@onterof as far as I understand it, facial recognition is only required (once) if you use your passport. I don't think it's necessary for a national eID (I guess, passports don't include enough cryptographic hardware or something to actually authenticate someone?):
ageverification.dev/Getting%20…
in reply to European Commission

Why not use the EU wallet instead of a custom app? The rumor has it that it is insecure, see cybersecuritynews.com/eus-age-…
in reply to European Commission

It is for parents to raise their children. Not platforms.


then what about queer children living in homophobic families ? what about if a child is a victim of abuse at home ? should we let them in harmful environments with no way of getting support or help or information until they are 18 ?

and, it's not like as soon as someone turns 18 that they magically become wise and smart and everything is good. the issues kids face online are also faced by adults, wouldn't it be more productive to regulate platforms and require proper moderation and tagging instead ?

in reply to European Commission

@European Commission

It is for parents to raise their children. Not platforms.

Are you our children parents? This is taken out of context for PR reasons and it's the big tech industries or corporations that you name 'Platforms' that must take their responsibility, not the whole population even the ones without children.
This is discriminating and fascist style of merge the state with big Corps made by your own.

A crowd control system more in Big Brother Society , in fact Privacy is a Human Right!!!! So those platforms you say have to respect that and not make new rules and laws by those that were not elected.

I live in this Country but people from another Country make the laws as long they elected??? and elected by who? Do 1 of those a general election over whole EU as majority? No

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

"Works on any device"

Does it work on properly free phones - PostMarketOS, LineageOS, GrapheneOS, /e/os? Does it work on ANYTHING that's not tied to the Google, Apple or Microsoft surveillance empires?

For that matter, does it work on desktop Linux systems such as Fedora, Mint, Arch, for people who do not have smartphones?

I bet I know the answer to both questions.

What a joke.

in reply to European Commission

"It is for parents to raise their children. Not platforms." ok, then it's the responsibility of parents to gatekeep their offsprings internet use, I have only been asked proof of age when buying booze once in my life, everyone else used common sense and didn't bother me, there is no point everyone having to use this platform, it should be the parents responsibility to deal with this.
in reply to European Commission

> It is for parents to raise their children

Maybe leave it up to the parents to do the parenting? It's not your 'job'.

And the source code is on M$ GitHub.
And I'm sure you've made it dependent on Google's and Apple's software, making yourself even more dependent on the US.

Have you ever considered NOT listening to US Big Tech lobbyists for your 'ideas'?

There are plenty of knowledgeable people in the EU who could give you actual useful suggestions who don't have an agenda.

in reply to European Commission

@European Commission You are endangering people by putting every ones life in a database and we all know one day it will be breached even with your military standards of security. So, I wonder what are you doing??? You care not for the Children that is bs, you never cared about them I remember pointing them to my local authority with no results. You just want control about our every step in life and more to come soon.

Remember one thing, on the internet .. no system is safe.
And you ask us to put ourselves vulnerable. On top spit on Privacy laws and as such human rights law.

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to plotters

@plotters @jolla There are more mobile devices than those that run the last couple versions of two US based OSes. So much for soverinity, security and equal opportunities for people of different financial background...

There's a good chance that pure Linux based mobile OSes will be essential for the data sovereignty and security of the EU in a short while.

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

Good morning EU commission. As any day you share with us other techno contol tools that we not asked, prone to bugs, malware, rising the excuse that it's to protect childrens. As a janitor, I do not want that their safety is forever linked to an app (with all the preventivable weaknesses of the platforms where it run). Please do something for european citizens, instead to extend USA dupolies
in reply to European Commission

"any device" does not apply to:
- HarmonyOS devices
- LineageOS devices
- /e/OS devices
- postmarketOS devices
- GrapheneOS devices
- Linux Laptops
- Android devices of which Google believes they're not worthy to be used

I don't own any of your "any devices", since I prefer to keep Google out of my most personal life and data, I also plan to keep it that way.

reshared this

in reply to European Commission

La misma Europa que dice estar muy preocupada por la infancia es cómplice del exterminio de decenas de miles de niños en Gaza. La infancia no os importa nada, se trata de identificar a cada persona que use internet (control de edad), y saber todo lo que dicen y piensan (chatcontrol) para poder perseguir en el futuro a toda disidencia. Ya se persigue en muchos países de la UE a quienes denuncian el genocidio y se tilda de terrorista a ecologistas por usar pintura lavable en actos
This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to VHG 🇪🇺🇩🇪

Tech bro universal panopitcon surveillance based control is a touted feature of the post democracy billionaire oligarchy.

And its stupid.

fff.org/explore-freedom/articl…

theguardian.com/technology/201…

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

@European Commission Instead of legalizing weed.. you diminish street criminality and get a good revenue in taxes but no.. people even need it therapeutic what about those laws?
those kids you forbid to use the net will turn to weed smoking, so better legalize that and make a buck of it
This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)
in reply to European Commission

Still not convinced of the need for a technical solution to protecting children online (as opposed to parenting).

However, props to the EU for their open source, cross-platform approach.

I could actually get behind this, if the initial certificate request would be a one time login to a government website, using an eID. Any validation by a 3rd party company would be a no-go.

With the cert. then containing only a boolean, this looks like a rather acceptable idea.

in reply to European Commission

if the idea is for parents to raise their children, then this is the opposite of it. Apart from the obvious that this is about tracking, censorship, control and dissolving privacy and not about children's safety in any way - what is the idea behind this? I mean, I'll have the same conversations with my children about any content, digital or otherwise. They'll need to exercise judgment and I'll need to stay involved. Trying to "automate" parenting has never and will never work.
in reply to European Commission

This is just a phenomenally bad idea.

Using a device is about as equivalent to drinking alcohol as apples are to bricks.

You know how the government regulates whether bottles and firearms have a weight and shape so that a toddler can't physically pick them up, right?

That was an example of how ridiculous age verification sounds.

A better idea is to do what societies have been successfully doing with kids and "hazardous" materials- make the parents responsible, and liable.

in reply to Plan-A̵̛͈̬̥̿͋̓͛̕

@zer0unplanned please take a deep breath, or at least use some punctuation. yes, this is all bad, but it's not all the *same* bad. the california law just lets you assert your age when you create an account, for example; no checking. that's just pointless, but right now i could use some pointless.
in reply to European Commission

boosting not because I approve of this, but for visibility that you’re going this route.

It’s the place of platforms to promptly police their content appropriately for each jurisdiction, not to lobby governments to push that responsibility elsewhere.

Strong legislation, strong enforcement, and fines that aren’t just treated as “the cost of doing business” are what is needed.

This app of yours may have its uses, but replacing content moderation with “prove you are 18” is not one of them in my opinion. Especially when this general approach has already resulted in device vendors locking features users have paid for (looking at you, Apple) if they choose not to verify.

in reply to European Commission

How about just banning children from the internet instead like a number of countries are doing right now, instead of enforcing a stupid app on the entirety of Europe that will suck for everyone and not work on all OS'es.

If this moronic idea would be put into a referendum, it would be dead and gone within a week. Just because parents don't wanna take their fucking responsibility by putting a mobile phone in the hands of their children, everyone else should not be punished.

Keep the internet free from control.

in reply to European Commission

The media in this post is not displayed to visitors. To view it, please go to the original post.

What's this, @EUCommission ?
Are you trying to hide the fact that the European Age Verification App has been vibe-coded with Anthropic's LLM?

github.com/eu-digital-identity…

in reply to European Commission

To verify that every adult is an adult, you need to identify every adult. And children will not be protected. Age verification carries consequences that go well beyond its stated purpose.

So wow, thank you for repressing my freedom and creating an infrastructure that can be used to monitor, map, or suppress citizens. In the name of “the poor children”. What a great idea at the same time as fascism is on the rise.

in reply to European Commission

The highest privacy standards in the world can be broken in two minutes. Nothing to boast about, really.

politico.eu/article/eu-brussel…

in reply to Simon Roy Hughes 🧌 ⬋⬋⬋

@SimonRoyHughes
Elephant in room:
"Age checking" is nothing of the sort. It's 100% tracking & surveillance of all adults.

A shop selling alcohol or knives only check ID of some people and in most cases nothing whatsoever is put on computer, especially if you pay cash and don't use a loyalty card.

in reply to European Commission

"Just like shops ask for proof of age for people buying alcoholic beverages."

In real life, people can go shopping in a supermarket without an ID. It will be necessary only if they try to buy alcohol.

Generalized age verification to access a platform, whether some content should be restricted or not, is a privacy issue.

Harmful content is harmful also for adults, BTW. Most of it is just illegal activities and platforms should seriously face their own issues.

in reply to European Commission

You're burying freedom and celebrate it using the line that was an old dog whistle for reactionary politics even back when The Simpsons took it up in the Nineties - what a travesty!

Yes, parents should raise their children, but do you also know who should raise children: the rest of society! Ever heard of "it takes a village to raise a child"?

Like it or not, society is taking place more in virtual spaces than in physical ones, nowadays. Excluding youths from taking part in discussions that shape society will lead to adults that are ill-prepared to combat fake news and recruitment by the far right.

The corollary is that anybody who is speaking out against those who want to turn our society into an authoritarian one will wary of doing so in online spaces, because every message, every rebuke of a hateful message can ultimately be tracked. I don't care how super-duper your app is, once the enemies of democracy take power, the data will be there and it will be searchable.

Anonymity can be used as a cloak for evil, but more often it is a shield for the vulnerable, a way to speak up without being doxxed and harassed and a way to find information that abusers don't want you to find.

Should we try to make our children safer online? Absolutely, but there are better ways than that, unfortunately, the all cost time and money. Just shooting an app at the problem is easy and low-cost. Invest in education, invest in psychologically trained law-enforcement, invest in holding platforms responsible for their decisions.

PS: I don't have a smartphone and no webcam either. I guess I'll have to stay offline then.

in reply to European Commission

EU commission, what we need is an app that show to us EU citizen every event of political genesis of your decision, every closed door meeting, every technical evaluation, every discussion with lobbyst, and all the economic transactions on your bank accounts. This would be a great advance in our confidence in your commitment to democracy, nobody would oppose to it. It would be democracy.
in reply to European Commission

It is for parents to raise their children. Not platforms.


yes, and it's also up to parents to prevent their children from accessing unwanted content on the internet by setting up filters on the child's device. and to have a conversation about the existence of such things at the appropriate time with the child.

NOT, I REPEAT, NOT THE GOVERNMENT'S JOB. the parent needs to parent their child.

in reply to European Commission

don’t understand what are we going to reach here… age verification reminds when we are young and want to go to a bar, if we are blocked we workaround and ask someone of age to buy drinks…

How do you intend to do when some pricks decide to stream online a violation at TikTok like unfortunately happens at PT??
Remove all responsibility from the social platform just because of age verification.
The problem of online is the advertising and all about 💰->

in reply to Sérgio Machado

guess we are becoming bi-polar … for one hand we make GDPR and the other a completely measure against privacy that will lead only to massive surveillance…
Curiosity a company have a breach since exist age verification who will investigate what ? And if no trace is found, you are assuming the responsibility for that ?
I know that global surveillance is now a trend but … we had a war less then 90 years ago, what happened to “registering” at that time ?
in reply to Androcat

@androcat @nasd1066 i think heavier weapons than fines are needed, or the fines need to be truly gargantuan; it has been repeatedly shown that USAmerican corporations will just calculate fines as part of running costs and won't care

i think platforms need to be threatened with being banned in the EU entirely unless they comply, otherwise they'll just keep finding loopholes or buying their way out of it