Data Protection Digital Identity Privacy

Protecting minors online takes more than age verification

DIDAS warns that age verification alone cannot solve harmful content, addictive design, profiling or commercial exploitation of children online. Where verification is necessary, it should reveal only what is required, such as a simple “over/under age threshold”, without exposing identity, birth date or biometrics. DIDAS proposes six principles: privacy by design/default, unlinkability, data minimisation, open-source […]

GDPR Information Security Personal data Privacy

EU Age Verification under scrutiny as transparency questions remain

The European Commission’s DG CONNECT disclosed nine documents in response to an access-to-documents request, but all were already publicly available resources. No Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA), internal privacy-by-design documentation, threat models, or controller-role assessments were released. DG CONNECT stated it does not hold a DPIA, arguing that responsibility lies with the future publisher of […]

Cybersecurity Personal data Privacy

UK pushes for tougher age checks as TikTok faces investigation

The UK’s communications regulator, Ofcom, is demanding stronger age verification measures from social media platforms ahead of a proposed social media age ban. The regulator has launched an investigation into TikTok, questioning whether its current age assurance methods effectively protect minors. Ofcom is also investigating dozens of adult websites and working with Google and Bing […]