Discord will roll out a global change in early March that will limit accounts unless users verify their age. The company says it will treat all accounts as teen by default until users prove they are adults. Users can verify by submitting an ID or by using an on device facial age check.
What this means in practice is that many features will be limited for unverified accounts. Those limits include the ability to see sensitive media, to join age gated channels, and to use certain direct message settings. Discord calls the new setting teen by default and says it will protect younger people online while meeting global rules.
Social media received a lot of shock and anger over the number of users. The new and existing accounts will be impacted by the change. Discord says the rollout will be phased and that more verification choices will come over time.
What is Changing
Discord described several kinds of limits that will apply by default to unverified accounts. The limits cover content filters and access to age gated spaces. The limits also apply to messages from unknown people. Some communities will restrict who can speak on stage to age verified adults only. These rules will be enforced until a user completes age verification.
The company says that message request handling will be different for unverified users. Friend request prompts and content blur settings will act like they do for people under 13. That is the core of the teen by default approach. Discord says this is aimed at safety and compliance.
How to Verify
Discord offers two main ways to verify age at launch. One way is to upload an official photo ID to a trusted vendor. Discord says documents are deleted quickly after processing. The other way is a facial age check. The facial check uses a short video selfie and runs on the user device. Discord says the video selfie never leaves the device when facial age estimation runs locally.
Discord says more verification options will arrive later. According to the company, this will help to guard away the minors and retain verified adults on the platform. Opinionated individuals fear privacy, data management and the challenge it presents to the community that depend on open access.
ID Scans Spark Pushback
Privacy experts and many users raised concerns about ID scanning and face checks. The main worries are about data leaks, vendor security, and how long documents or logs are kept. Some users asked Discord to offer privacy safe options that avoid sending personal documents to third parties. Many also said the change could harm small communities and casual users.
Discord responded that it is working with trusted partners and that many protections are in place. The company pointed to on device processing for facial checks and fast deletion for ID documents as key safeguards. The debate is likely to continue as the rollout reaches more countries.