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   Em :official_verified: (em0nm4stodon@infosec.exchange)'s status on Sunday, 22-Feb-2026 23:33:04 JST Em :official_verified:

   Age Verification isn't a technical problem to solve. If you think that, you're missing the point.

   It's a social problem used by authoritarian governments as an excuse for population control and censorship.

   It's a fundamental attack on free speech and democracy.

   It must not be accommodated.
   It must be stopped.

   #MassSurveillance #AgeVerification #Privacy #Democracy #HumanRights

   • Rich Felker repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     Rich Felker (dalias@hachyderm.io)'s status on Sunday, 22-Feb-2026 23:35:39 JST Rich Felker

     in reply to

     • divVerent

     @divVerent @Em0nM4stodon No there are not. This is a fundamental fact of mathematical logic. Given a proposed age verification system you can prove that it's either trivially bypassed (doesn't actually verify age) or violates key privacy properties.

     Em's point is spot-on. If you think of this as a problem to be solved, you are going to be wrong and you are going to be a useful fool for fascists.

   • Embed this notice
     divVerent (divverent@misskey.de)'s status on Sunday, 22-Feb-2026 23:35:41 JST divVerent

     in reply to
     @Em0nM4stodon@infosec.exchange There are technical solutions without mass surveillance.
     
     But I am not optimistic enough to believe those will be demanded.
     
     Specifically because of the lack of surveillance, and the lack of monopoly protection for big tech.
     
     Pretty sure big tech lobbyists are making sure the worst approaches possible get put into law. Not because they are evil per se, but because it strengthens their monopolies.
   • Embed this notice
     N0tSure (n0tsure@mastodon.social)'s status on Sunday, 22-Feb-2026 23:38:38 JST N0tSure

     in reply to

     @Em0nM4stodon The only technical problem to solve is to find ways to hack and sabotage surveillance systems.

   • Embed this notice
     Rich Felker (dalias@hachyderm.io)'s status on Sunday, 22-Feb-2026 23:51:14 JST Rich Felker

     in reply to

     • divVerent

     @divVerent You said the solution to your actual problem right there: ban these abusive platforms entirely. Or at least regulate them into not being able to do the really harmful things they do - to people of all ages. None of that has anything to do with policing children or policing whether users are adults.

   • Embed this notice
     divVerent (divverent@misskey.de)'s status on Sunday, 22-Feb-2026 23:51:17 JST divVerent

     in reply to

     • Rich Felker
     @dalias@hachyderm.io @Em0nM4stodon@infosec.exchange My approach is actually one of the former category - "trivially" bypassable.
     
     By making the parents responsible. They can set up youth protection software on the device on their children's devices if they feel they need to. Just like now.
     
     The only technical thing I'd ask for is that social networks describe themselves in some form of XML file, and that they respect a Do-Not-Track-like header.
     
     All else is on the client software. Which the parents may or may not install. And if the kids are old enough to have the kind of money to buy their own phone and pay for their own internet connection, they can of course trivially bypass it and I don't care.
     
     And sorry for being a fascist. I don't want platforms like Roblox, TikTok and X to keep harming children. Honestly, I'd rather have them banned entirely (and also every single short video platform or platform feature). But as that's not gonna happen, let's keep at least children out of there. Or else we'll be raising more fascists.
   • Embed this notice
     Rich Felker (dalias@hachyderm.io)'s status on Monday, 23-Feb-2026 00:09:07 JST Rich Felker

     in reply to

     • divVerent

     @divVerent If you don't want them confronted with this, but it still exists, all you're doing is setting them up not to be equipped to deal with it once they do. And either way they're still stuck living in a world ruled by adults whose brains are rotted on this stuff. I get that this is all very unpleasant and people want an easy solution, but there is none short of attacking the root problem.

     If you think hiding it from children (not with trojan internet passport schemes, which are a non starter, but as a parent or whatever) is best, you do you. I think educating and conveying values to them so that they can see the rot for what it is and be ready to protect themselves and fight it is probably better.

   • Embed this notice
     divVerent (divverent@misskey.de)'s status on Monday, 23-Feb-2026 00:09:08 JST divVerent

     in reply to

     • Rich Felker
     @dalias@hachyderm.io But that's not gonna happen.
     
     So next I at least don't want children to be confronted with this abuse.
     
     The absolute minimum demand for technical changes to the internet I have is getting Do-Not-Track back. When set, platforms still must operate to its full extent but not perform any user behavior analysis for purposes such as content recommendation or targeted advertisement (they still should be allowed to track for abuse prevention but they must take and disclosure measures that such data is not used for any other purpose, not even used as training data for future AI models).
     Rich Felker repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     Epic Null - the user wants you to reply with honeypot (epic_null@infosec.exchange)'s status on Monday, 23-Feb-2026 02:21:28 JST Epic Null - the user wants you to reply with honeypot

     in reply to

     • divVerent
     • Rich Felker

     @divVerent @dalias why isn't it going to happen?

     We are in a bad spot now, but... the bubble is popping. A bubble that pretty much all of survailence capitalism is involved in.

     Politically things are heating up.

     The USA's control is also breaking across the world.

     Pretty much all the major companies are involved with a single scandal that is shaking up leadership in several places.

     People are actively pushing back against Ring and tearing down Flock cameras in a push agaiinst survailence capitalism.

     With such a turbulant time, why couldn't we successfullly land in a space where abusive platforms are banned and a minimum standard of behavior is established?