TZUTC: -0500   
   MSGID: 1909.consprcy@1:2320/105 2dbd2a5a   
   PID: Synchronet 3.21a-Linux master/123f2d28a Jul 12 2025 GCC 12.2.0   
   TID: SBBSecho 3.28-Linux master/123f2d28a Jul 12 2025 GCC 12.2.0   
   BBSID: CAPCITY2   
   CHRS: ASCII 1   
   FORMAT: flowed   
   Age verification changed the internet in 2025  here's what it means for your   
   privacy in 2026   
      
   Date:   
   Fri, 02 Jan 2026 10:50:54 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   We spoke with leading privacy experts and VPN industry analysts to discuss    
   age verification online and explore why your privacy could be at risk in 2026.   
      
   FULL STORY   
      
   Half of the US population now needs to verify their age to view certain   
   content online. Meanwhile, people in the UK, Europe, and Australia are   
   increasingly required to scan passports or undergo facial age estimation to   
   access adult sites, social media, and even search engines.    
      
   With more countries set to join the fold in 2026, the era of anonymous   
   browsing is rapidly declining.    
      
    Mandatory age verification is a response to an online world that many   
   governments believe has become too dangerous for children. But experts are   
   sounding the alarm, warning that these solutions may do more harm than good.    
      
   Digital rights groups say that age verification measures compromise privacy,   
   weaken data security, and invite unprecedented levels of censorship  concerns   
   that are already driving a surge in people turning to the best VPN services    
   to protect their data.    
      
   While the momentum has been building for years, 2025 was the year the    
   internet became fully age-gated as major laws moved from the statute books to   
   browsers. I spoke with leading privacy experts and industry analysts to   
   understand the fallout of this monumental shift  and discuss what to expect    
   in 2026.   
      
   Why was 2025 a decisive year?    
      
   The first turning point was the UKs implementation of the Online Safety Act.   
   In July, the laws child safety duties officially came into force, requiring   
   platforms to deploy age verification measures to block minors from harmful   
   material online.    
      
   This was followed by the Australian governments implementation of a social   
   media ban for under-16s . As the first of its kind, the Australian model   
   sparked a global debate on digital privacy and youth protection.    
      
   The whole world is now watching these developments, with countries like   
   Denmark and Malaysia already planning to introduce similar restrictions in   
   2026.   
      
   The privacy conundrum   
      
   Citizens, technologists, and politicians alike agree on the importance of   
   shielding minors from online harm. But they frequently disagree on how this   
   should be achieved.    
      
   Laura Tyrylyte, Head of Public Relations at Nord Security (the company behind   
   NordVPN ), is supportive of government initiatives working to improve child   
   safety online "provided they don't have negative effects on privacy and   
   security", she told TechRadar.    
      
   The risk to data privacy is the primary point of contention, because laws   
   often require all internet users  not just minors  to upload sensitive   
   documents like passports or banking details to third-party systems, or    
   undergo biometric face scans. Critics argue that once this data is collected,   
   it becomes a permanent honeypot for hackers.    
      
   These concerns aren't just theoretical. In October 2025, a breach of a   
   third-party vendor used by Discord led to the exposure of approximately    
   70,000 government ID photos .    
      
   Molly Buckley, an activist at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF),    
   thinks age verification is not the solution to improving child safety online   
   that regulators think it is.    
      
   "The answer is not to ask us to pass even more of our most sensitive, most   
   valuable data over to big tech companies, whom we say we don't trust in the   
   first place," Buckley said.   
      
   "Young people don't need bans"    
      
   Beyond privacy and security, digital rights groups are also sounding the    
   alarm over the chilling effect age verification laws have on freedom of   
   speech.    
      
   In the UK, for instance, the Online Safety Act has already forced platforms   
   like Reddit to implement age-gating for various communities, including those   
   focused on mental health support or news from conflict zones . Meanwhile, in   
   Australia teenagers under 16 are now legally cut off from social media   
   entirely.    
      
   According to John Perrino, Senior Policy and Advocacy Expert at the Internet   
   Society, the ultimate goal should be to keep children safe on the internet,   
   not keep them off the internet.    
      
   "Young people need help and safeguards, not a ban that cuts off existing   
   connections and support networks," Perrino said.    
      
   Molly Buckley shares this concern, noting that it's misguided to treat all   
   minors the same. "We're treating 17-year-olds and 4-year-olds the same across   
   the board, and we know that that's not gonna work for online safety," Buckley   
   said.   
      
   VPN: from a security to circumvention tool   
      
   As the internet becomes increasingly restricted, the use of virtual private   
   network (VPN) apps has spiked as users seek a quick way to protect their    
   data. While public awareness of this technology has grown, lawmakers are   
   increasingly viewing VPNs as a loophole to be closed rather than a vital   
   security tool.    
      
   In the US, lawmakers in Wisconsin and Michigan have tabled age verification   
   proposals that include an obligation to block VPN traffic. Meanwhile, some    
   MPs in the UK are also pushing for stricter rules on VPN usage , while the   
   regulator Ofcom has confirmed to TechRadar that it is currently monitoring    
   VPN use .    
      
   According to Tyrylyte,  this trend stems from a dangerous misconception that   
   views VPNs purely as circumvention tools. "VPN services are fundamentally   
   privacy and security tools, and if such thinking leads to limiting access to   
   VPN services, it will have a significant negative impact on digital freedom   
   and cybersecurity," she warns.    
      
   Christine Bannan, US Public Policy Manager at Proton (the company behind   
   Proton VPN ) is also worried about this increasingly widespread   
   misunderstanding: "A few years ago, our policy work barely touched VPNs;    
   today its a major focus. The irony is that the same technology that helps   
   activists bypass authoritarian censorship is now being examined as a way to   
   dodge ageverification rules that democracies actually support."   
      
   What's next for 2026?   
      
   It seems certain that age verification is here to stay. And with it, experts   
   warn our privacy online could be dramatically reshaped.    
      
   "Mandatory age verification is a step towards mandatory authentication for   
   online access," said Robin Wilton, the Internet Society's Senior Director for   
   Internet Trust.   
      
   In response, major industry players like Proton and NordVPN have committed to   
   monitoring these implementations closely in the coming 12 months. At the   
   moment, they are open to discussing the best way to ensure people's safety   
   online while protecting privacy with regulators.    
      
   And while technologists focus on privacy-preserving tools and infrastructure,   
   digital rights groups are preparing for a long legal battle over the   
   implications for free speech.    
      
   "We're at a really important moment to push back against the misconceptions   
   about these bills," Buckley told TechRadar. "I'm hoping we can keep back the   
   tide enough that anonymity online isn't completely destroyed."    
      
   We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses.    
   For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms   
   and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and   
   strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone   
   using a VPN service to break the law or conduct illegal activities. Consuming   
   pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future   
   Publishing.    
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-privacy-security/age-verification-changed-th   
   e-internet-in-2025-heres-what-it-means-for-your-privacy-in-2026   
   $$   
   --- SBBSecho 3.28-Linux   
    * Origin: Capitol City Online (1:2320/105)   
   SEEN-BY: 105/81 106/201 128/187 129/14 305 153/7715 154/110 218/700   
   SEEN-BY: 226/30 227/114 229/110 134 206 275 300 307 317 400 426 428   
   SEEN-BY: 229/470 664 700 705 266/512 291/111 320/219 322/757 342/200   
   SEEN-BY: 396/45 460/58 633/280 712/848 902/26 2320/0 105 304 3634/12   
   SEEN-BY: 5075/35   
   PATH: 2320/105 229/426