Publications
Privacy; a foundational concept for age verification
Perhaps the most frequent concern raised about age verification is a risk to privacy. But the essence of age assurance is the ability to prove your age online WITHOUT disclosing your identity. Our industry would not exist were there not the absolute need to preserve...
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AVPA responds to Ofcom consultation on Pornographic websites
The AVPA has responded to the consultation by Ofcom on how it intends to regulate pornographic websites under Part 5 of the Online Safety Act. We were broadly supportive of their approach, but there is one major ommission - the definition of "highly effective age...
Response to an article by AVN on the use of Virtual Private Networks
The Free Speech Coalition expressed concern in this tweet by Mike Stabile, that an article in Politico implied we oppose the use of Virtual Private Networks and shared the view of un-named “Labour MPs” (actually just Sarah Champion MP) who wish to restrict VPN use in...
AVPA gives evidence to Utah Senate Business and Labor Committee
On Wednesday 14th February, we were invited to addres the Utah Senate Business and Labor Committee which is considering a revision to the State's existing laws designed to protect minors from the harms presented by the use of social media. It was the longest hearing...
AVPA responses to Ireland’s Coimisiún na Meán
We responded to a consultation on the new Online Safety Code proposed by the Coimisiún na Meán, Ireland new online regulator. We shared our views that: The Coimisiún should be careful it does not imply that smaller sites are exempt from taking action to protect...
Panel discusson at the Internext Expo / AVN convention
We joined a panel discussing age verification at the Internext-Expo conference, taking place in parallel with the AVN show in Las Vegas. Also speaking were Corey D. Silverstein and Larry Walters, well known lawyers specialising in this field, and Mark Bauman of...
Alternatives to AV – Filtering Software
Since the case of Ashcroft v. American Civil Liberties Union, 542 U.S. 656 (2004) was decided by the US Supreme Court, with a 6-3 majority agreeing that the Child Online Protection Act (1998) did not pass the strict scrutiny test used to judge obscenity cases,...
Alternatives to AV – device-based age verification apps
The Spanish data protection authority, the Agencia espanola protección datos (AEPD) recently developed three proofs of concept for applying age verification on devices. One was for gaming consoles, the other two for Android and iOS based devices. The concept is...
Alternatives to AV – App stores age restrictions
There has been a lively debate about the potential to use app stores to impose age restrictions. For example, a new data protection law in India requires users to be 18+ to give consent for their personal data to be shared, so there is a ubiquitous need for online...
Lessons for US Legislators considering age verification
Last year, we helped to provide expert witness testimony for US federal courts considering whether various state laws requiring age verification, be that for pornography, social media or age-appropriate design, were constitutional. The arguments heard in court, and...