Discord will soon require users worldwide to verify their age either through a face scan or by uploading an official ID to access adult content, as part of stricter safety measures designed to protect teenagers.
The chat platform, with more than 200 million monthly users, said all accounts will default to a teen-appropriate experience. Only verified adults will be able to join age-restricted communities, unblur sensitive material, or receive direct messages from strangers.
Age checks, already in place for some users in the UK and Australia, will expand globally from early March. “Nowhere is our safety work more important than when it comes to teen users,” said Savannah Badalich, Discord’s head of policy. He added that the rollout strengthens protections while preserving flexibility for adults.
Verification will involve either uploading an ID photo or taking a short video selfie, with AI estimating facial age. Discord stressed that data will not be stored: face scans remain on-device, and ID images are deleted once verification is complete.
The move has sparked mixed reactions. Drew Benvie of consultancy Battenhall welcomed safer communities but warned that scaling age checks across millions of servers could prove difficult, potentially driving users away—or attracting new ones who value stronger safeguards.
Privacy concerns linger. In October, Discord faced criticism after ID photos of about 70,000 users were exposed in a hack of a third-party verification firm.
The announcement comes amid intensifying pressure on tech companies to protect children online. Discord CEO Jason Citron was questioned on child safety at a US Senate hearing in 2024 alongside executives from Meta, Snap, and TikTok.
With new measures including a teen advisory council, Discord joins platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Roblox in adopting stricter age protections as regulators worldwide push for safer digital spaces.
