Xbox is legally required in some territories, such as the UK and, more recently, Australia, to verify the age of its users in order to access certain features.
Whether we like it or not, there's no way around it. Governments will always government. But what most of us objected to more was the use of faceless third-parties that were being used to verify some of our most personal information. In Xbox's case, it was Yoti, a company that's found itself in hot water before over its handling of data.
Fortunately, at long, long last, if you've held out on completing Xbox age verification, it looks like you won't have to. A message is hitting the inboxes of those accounts that haven't yet verified their age through other means but have been determined as having an "adult account" through their activity.
Our own Ben Wilson was one such holdout and got the message himself last night. Here's what it says in full:
Due to longstanding account activity, we've estimated your Xbox profile to be an adult account and updated its age verification status to "Verified." You are no longer required to complete full age verification for uninterrupted access to social features on Xbox. While no further action is required, you can update your privacy and safety settings on Xbox at any time. For more information, click "Learn more" below.
Reddit is likewise lighting up with folks who've had the same message and have been released from the requirements to verify their age for full access.
This seems to be taking place predominantly in the UK, with Australian age verification recently hitting the news as frustrated users see what us Brits were faced with at first.
But since Xbox can clearly identify your age effectively using your account data, why isn't it applied automatically to everyone immediately?
I don't personally care whether I have to be verified as an adult or not, but I do care about being asked to hand over biometric data to companies I have no usual business with. I remember many years ago, being told by a local shop they wouldn't photocopy my passport for me because they wouldn't handle personal information such as this.
Now we're being asked to funnel all that into a computer somewhere, trusting that they're going to behave responsibly with it.
But a win's a win. Even if it's a win that took a little long to get here. Hopefully it can roll out quickly in any subsequent markets that require age verification.
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