Discord Launches New Age Verification Policy Today

In February, Discord introduced “teen-by-default” settings along with a contentious age-verification policy that would alter those settings. The response was immediate, with users quickly seeking out alternative chat platforms. In light of the backlash, Discord decided to postpone the rollout of its age verification measures until the latter half of 2026. Now, as we approach the end of the year, Discord has begun to implement its “global age assurance” plans.

In a recent blog post titled “Safer for Teens, Same Discord for Adults,” Discord’s CTO and co-founder Stanislav Vishnevskiy explained how these new policies will function, emphasizing that 90% of users won’t need to verify their ages. Discord will automatically categorize users into different age groups based on various account signals, such as account age and server memberships. The accuracy of this method is said to rival biometric verification. Importantly, no single server will determine your age group, and your messages or calls won’t be scrutinized for this purpose.

You can check your assigned age group by visiting the “Account Status” page in your user settings. As noted by Vishnevskiy, the rollout of these new settings will occur throughout the week, so you might not see immediate changes in your settings.

Depending on your assigned age group, your experience on Discord may vary. Adults will see no changes, while teens will face some content restrictions. Users categorized as “unconfirmed” will also encounter limitations on adult content until they verify their age.

These age settings are designed to enhance the safety of teen users. Here’s how Discord will differ for those in the teen category:

Who can contact you: Messages from users who aren’t friends will go to your message requests inbox, allowing you to review them first. To disable this feature, you’ll need to confirm that you’re an adult. Additionally, you’ll receive a notification before accepting friend requests from users without mutual friends or shared small servers. This change won’t affect your existing contacts.

What you can access: Sensitive images flagged by Discord’s content filters will be blurred or blocked based on their context. Access to age-restricted servers, channels, and bot commands will be limited, and confirming your adult status is required to change this.

What others can see: Your complete profile details and activity, such as the games you’re playing, will only be visible to friends and members of smaller servers you belong to. You can modify these settings at any time.

For users in the unconfirmed group, the same restrictions apply, but your full profile details and activity will be visible to friends and members of all servers you’re part of.

Back in February, Discord promised additional age verification options beyond just a video selfie or ID submission, which were detailed in the recent blog post. Users were assured that any data shared would solely be used to determine age groups, allowing for a choice of verification methods. New options include entering credit card information, allowing the Apple App Store and Google Play Store to share your age group (not your exact birthdate) with Discord, using Google Wallet for ID verification, or creating an AgeKey for cross-platform use.

Users have expressed understandable concerns about sharing sensitive information with Discord or third-party services for age verification, and skepticism remains high. Trust issues linger, especially after a previous security breach involving user data.

Comments on social media reflect this unease, with users questioning the security of uploaded selfies or ID photos. Some have stated that any request for ID verification would lead them to stop using the service altogether, while others have criticized the measures as invasive and data-hungry.

An FAQ section at the end of the blog addresses privacy concerns, stating that Discord has partnered with a new age assurance vendor, k-ID, to handle age verification. Discord clarified that they won’t receive personal information like names, credit card details, or ID scans. Instead, vendors like k-ID will process the data and provide Discord with a signal indicating the user’s age group, with a requirement for vendors to delete any uploaded data immediately after verification. For those opting for facial age estimation, Discord mandates that this process must occur entirely on the user’s device, ensuring biometric data remains private.

Only time will reveal whether these controversial changes will impact Discord’s user base or lead to a significant departure of users. As mentioned, you can expect to see your age group placement in your user settings in the coming days.

Age verification and ID-based measures are becoming more common among tech companies.