Gamers across the European Union (E.U.) will soon have to verify their age as part of the upcoming “E.U. Kids Act,” a report states.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the E.U.’s tech chief Henna Virkkunen are reportedly expected to present the so-called “E.U. Kids Act” on Thursday, with a preview slated during Von der Leyen’s State of the Union Address to the European Parliament on Wednesday.
The authoritarian bill is widely expected to introduce social media restrictions to minors aged 15 or younger similar to those implemented by other non-E.U. nations such as Australia and the United Kingdom. Euronews reports the E.U.’s iteration will cover not just social media and video-sharing platforms, but also online video games and online Artificial Intelligence chatbots as well. Per Euronews, the broader scope was a suggestion made by Spain and the Netherlands last week.
Euractiv, citing internal documents reviewed by the outlet, explained that as per the terms of the legislation, E.U. gamers seeking to sign up for a new online game account will have to carry out an age verification process. Said verification must be done through an E.U. tool or other solution coming from public authorities — furthermore, the legislation reportedly includes provisions stipulating that tech companies will have to pay the European Commission for “enforcement costs” of the new act.
“The E.U. Kids Act will oblige providers of social media services and video-sharing platforms to perform age verification when a user opens a new account,” the document reportedly read in part.
The implementation of compulsory age verification requirements for social media, and the ongoing push for such measures in several countries around the world has been met with fierce criticism — even by those who would see merit in preventing minors from freely accessing social media.
In the United Kingdom, where similar measures were announced earlier this year by then-Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, politicians warned that such measures would ultimately lead to some form of “Digital ID” documentation — a concept widely reviled by Britons all over the U.K.
Gamers in some of the countries where online age-checks have been implemented have faced additional restrictions and roadblocks. Earlier this year, Sony locked certain communications features to PlayStation users in the United Kingdom and Ireland behind a mandatory one-time age verification process in order to stand in compliance with U.K. legislation. Verification is done by either submitting a personal phone number, conducting a facial scan with a webcam or smartphone, or using other forms of ID verification.
The situation drew particular backlash towards Sony, as PlayStation was the target of a massive data breach in 2011 that exposed the personal data of about 77 million worldwide users, raising justifiable concerns over the safety of the new age verification data.
Last week, computer game distribution platform Steam introduced an age verification process for Australian users that requires the use of an Australian credit card.
Gaming outlet IGN noted the process has led to difficulties among Australian adults who prefer to use debit cards and do not have a credit card — effectively locking them out of the process even if their respective accounts were created over 20 years ago when the service first launched.
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