Microsoft is introducing age verification for UK-based Microsoft accounts used to access Xbox social services, citing compliance with the UK Online Safety Act. Registered Xbox users, including long-standing accounts dating to 2002, have been notified of the requirement. The UK law mandates "highly effective" age checks, eliminating simple honesty-based gates like "Are you over 18? Yes/No." Many providers are using age-estimation tools that analyze selfies with machine learning to judge age. Some young users are bypassing checks by using VPNs to appear outside the UK, prompting calls to expand age-gating to include VPN providers.
As part of our compliance program for the UK Online Safety Act and our ongoing investments in tools and technologies that help ensure age-appropriate experiences, we're introducing age verification for Microsoft accounts in the UK,
Age verification is a new feature being introduced for players logging into an Xbox experience with Microsoft accounts based in the UK. It helps ensure that we can continue to provide players on our platform with age-appropriate experiences and keep the Xbox community safe.
Are you over 18? Yes/No
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