Age-verification laws are spreading globally, raising privacy risks while Australia’s under-16 social media ban shows weak results

The article argues that online age checks often become identity verification, forcing users to share faces, IDs, or other sensitive data with platforms or third-party vendors. It points to Australia’s under-16 social media ban as an early warning: government and medical research suggest many teens still use social media despite the restrictions.

The push to protect children online is accelerating a broader shift toward a papers-please internet, where access to speech and services depends on proving identity. If these systems spread, they could normalize surveillance, create new breach risks, and chill sensitive or political expression without clearly achieving their stated safety goals.