Roughly half of U.S. states have enacted or are advancing laws requiring online platforms to verify users' ages to protect minors, but privacy advocates warn these systems are pulling millions of adults into mandatory identity checks. Verification vendors using AI-based facial recognition and ID scanning retain sensitive data for years, creating honeypots for hackers and government data requests. Discord delayed its global age-verification rollout after user backlash, while Snap advocates for device-level verification to reduce platform data collection. The EFF and civil liberties groups argue these laws risk building permanent surveillance infrastructure, and courts have already blocked some state laws on First Amendment grounds. Industry trends point toward persistent, cross-platform digital age credentials becoming a standard layer of internet access.
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