Unsurprisingly, Discord’s “teen-by-default” settings and ID verification announcement isn’t going over well with its user base. On Monday, the messaging platform announced it will require all adult users in March to verify their age, like through submitting a video selfie, to remove age-gated restrictions. Discord will view users who don’t verify their ages as teenagers, meaning their suite of features will be restricted. For example, unverified users won’t be allowed into age-restricted channels or servers, and they won’t be able to unblur sensitive content.
The response by users was swift and universal: they’re ready to leave Discord behind. “Yeah, asking me for a copy of my government id is a deal breaker for me for unnecessary platforms,” one Reddit user wrote. “There is no universe in which I will prioritize ‘Upload ID’ over ‘Delete Account,'” another said.
There’s reason to be wary of sharing sensitive data with Discord and third-party companies that will aid in age verification. Last fall, one of Discord’s third-party partners experienced a security breach, and at least 70,000 (and potentially millions more) users had their identification data exposed. After that breach, it’s difficult to take Discord at its word that user data will be safe in the company’s hands.
On Tuesday, Discord updated its initial announcement with more information, with clarifications that can only be described as damage control. “For the majority of adult users, we will be able to confirm your age group using information we already have. We use age prediction to determine, with high confidence, when a user is an adult. This allows many adults to access age-appropriate features without completing an explicit age check,” Discord wrote.
The company stressed not everyone will need to verify their age, and that for many users their experience using Discord won’t change. “Thanks for confirming that you’ve always been spying on your users,” one Twitter user wrote in response, and that sentiment has been echoed by others.
If the data Discord already has on you isn’t sufficient enough to confirm your status as an adult, additional verification via “privacy-forward options” will be required. Discord claims facial scans will “never leave your device,” IDs will be deleted after verifying your age, and that “your identity is never associated with your account,” only your age. The announcement post now has a FAQ section that mostly goes into more detail about how exactly the age verification process will work, but it all seems like too little, too late.
Google searches for “discord alternative” have increased by more than 10,0000% compared to the past month since Discord’s initial announcement. Alternative platforms have been gaining search traction as Discord users try to find a more trustworthy space. Chat apps Stoat, Matrix, Mumble, and TeamSpeak stand out as potential alternatives for Discord, while some Steam users have made the case that Valve should go all-in on its own chat platform.
