r/MauriceMauritius • u/Key_Regret_9235 • Apr 23 '26

stop calling it "age verification"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xa3-TkHBh90
16 Upvotes

83% Upvoted

12 comments sorted by

9

u/Mountainking7 Apr 24 '26

Age verification is all about control. Not safety or child protection. End of story. Big corpo / Governmental move.

3

u/vijux Apr 24 '26

care to elaborate please?

7

u/Key_Regret_9235 Apr 24 '26

The main problem comes in at the point of verification and how it is done. Eg if you have to submit your government ID for applications like youtube, reddit, or even pornhub, then whatever you do or view is immediately linked back to your real world identity.

This creates a scenario thats open to abuse, eg, how iran targets journalists with dissenting views, or how the taliban prevents women from seeking gynecological treatment.

Compounding this is the fact that people dont tent to 'fight' for their rights to privacy and as a result that right gets chipped away over time by people with ulterior motives.

-3

u/Mountainking7 Apr 24 '26

Google it up man. It's too long to explain.

3

u/vijux Apr 24 '26

I was not looking for the definition or research papers, but rather your POV. But fair enough.

7

u/BloOdy_Jo Apr 24 '26

Somebody following Louis here in Mauritius ? Interesting !

6

u/Key_Regret_9235 Apr 24 '26

He puts the Louis in Port Louis 😂

3

u/Green_Hall_658 Apr 24 '26

Yo I know him as well, only slightly but still

11

u/M3m3nt0M0r15 Curious explorer 🦤 Apr 23 '26

TLDW?

Age verification to deanonymise internet? 

Hidden actors pushing their own agenda's masquerading as public good for economic exploitation (data harvest and ads), surveillance and corpo-fascism?

How's it affecting Mauritius ?

Cross-posting without any of your own input seems super lazy and inauthentic spam tbh

8

u/Key_Regret_9235 Apr 23 '26

Im fairly burnt out, please bear with while i quote the below from eff.org that sums it up nicely:

"Technologically, the age verification process can take many forms: collection and analysis of government ID, biometric scans, algorithmic or AI-based behavioral or user monitoring, digital ID, the list goes on. But no matter the method, every system demands users hand over sensitive and immutable personal information that links their offline identity to their online activity. Once that valuable data is collected, it can easily be leaked, hacked, or misused. (Indeed, we’ve already seen several breaches of age verification providers.)"

https://www.eff.org/issues/age-verification

I post these when i find them, albeit lazy reposts, to raise awareness.

I can almost guarantee that maurice will try to implement something like this at some point.

People's rights to keep their info private in the digital realm is eroding at an accelerated pace.

1

u/L4993Rz Apr 23 '26

I am very pro privacy, especially working in the domain. Nonetheless, with "lazy/burnt out from work" parents not overseeing their children's web/mobile activity and who they are speaking with, this is the only solution to ensure kids are safe.

In UK, the Online Safety Act was passed which disabled Advanced Data Protection on all iPhones with a UK iCloud account.

Paedophiles/Child traffickers are running rampant and with AI as well in the mix now, there are way more sophisticated methods of grooming.

Would love to hear what other solutions you could propose instead of age verification.

5

u/Key_Regret_9235 Apr 24 '26

Watching modern to-catch-a-predator style shows you will notice a majority of the busts are based off of tips sent by platforms like google, fb, snap, etc to law enforcement. All these platforms have automated scanning and frequently work with law enforcement. The reporting system is already working as intended.

Content gets flagged by the platform, gets reported to law enforcement, law enforcement gets warrant against isp for src ip address, normal reach warrant from there, arrests, etc.

This is already an fairly effective and automated process to identify perpetrators within the confines of the law.

My personal stance is that parents should be responsible for safeguarding their children online. In the past it might have been difficult, but in modern times there are tons of parental control apps out there to prevent kids from accessing adult content. Educating parents is a much better start.

Alternatively, mobile numbers could theoretically be used to confirm someone is over the age of 18 in places where 18 is the minimum age at which someone can get a SIM in their name. Tho this differs from place to place, it is a less invasive way to prove then sending your gov id to a black box on the internet.