As a digital business, perhaps one of the biggest challenges you encounter daily is trying to balance effective and compliant age verification solutions with a low-friction user experience. And while low-friction verification solutions, like biometric verification and personally identifiable information (PII), exist, they also pose data privacy concerns that must be addressed.
Ultimately, the key is to find an effective and compliant age verification solution that can be seamlessly integrated into your existing IT infrastructure. Read on to understand more about privacy issues in age verification and how you can implement privacy-preserving verification within your business.
Privacy concerns in age verification
Effective age verification solutions often aren’t without their privacy concerns. As age verification solutions increasingly embrace personally identifiable information (PII) and biometrics to determine a user’s age, these solutions bring with them serious privacy concerns.
Data collection risks
Age verification often involves collecting sensitive personal information, like dates of birth, government-issued IDs or biometric data. In many cases, digital platforms request more information than what’s needed to adequately verify a user's identity and age.
But the true risks of data overcollection lie in storing this information. Stored personal information is a key target for hackers, leaving users at increased risk of unauthorised access, identity theft and misuse. As a result, many users are often wary of sharing this type of information if they feel their privacy isn't adequately protected.
It’s for this reason that many data protection regulations, like the GDPR (EU), CCPA (California) and Australia's Privacy Act, impose strict rules on how personal data is collected, stored, and used. Businesses that fail to comply with these laws risk fines, legal action and reputational damage.
User concerns over tracking and privacy
These days, consumers are becoming increasingly aware of how their personal data is being used, with age verification raising concerns over tracking, surveillance and long-term data retention.
Many users worry that verifying their age online means their data will be stored indefinitely. If businesses retain verification data instead of using real-time checks, users may feel that they are being monitored or profiled over time.
This concern is often spurred by a lack of transparency on the business side of exactly how they use and store verification data. If users don’t understand how their personal information is being handled, there’s a good chance they’ll hesitate to complete age verification or abandon platforms altogether.
Not to mention, if businesses are using third-party verification services, users might be concerned that their data is being shared across different websites and platforms.
Privacy-preserving verification solutions
In response to the data privacy concerns plaguing age verification, many businesses and vendors are turning their focus to privacy-preserving verification solutions. These methods seek to confirm a user’s age without storing or exposing unnecessary personal information.
Two of the most promising technologies leading this shift are Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) and Blockchain-based verification.
Zero-knowledge proofs
A zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) is a cryptographic method that allows one party (the prover) to confirm something (E.G. they’re over 18) to another party (the verifier) without revealing any additional personal data.
Instead of sharing an ID with a platform, users would verify their age with a trusted third party, like a government agency or identity provider. That provider then issues a cryptographic proof that confirms the user meets the age requirement, but without sharing their birth date, name or other details.
Not only does this method minimise data collection and reduce security risks, but it’s also compliant with global privacy laws, including GDPR, CCPA and other key regulations.
Blockchain-based verification
Blockchain technology offers another privacy-friendly approach to age verification. A blockchain is a decentralised, immutable ledger, meaning once data is recorded, it can’t be altered or tampered with.
The process starts when a trusted organisation, like a government agency or identity provider, issues a verifiable age credential recorded on the blockchain. From here, users store this credential in a digital wallet (E.G. a mobile app). When the user is required to verify their age, they present the credential and businesses can instantly confirm its authenticity without the need to access or store the user’s private data.
Compliance strategies for privacy laws
With the growing demand for privacy-preserving age verification, businesses must navigate complex data protection laws like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Each of these regulations imposes strict guidelines on how personal data is collected, stored, and used, making compliance a top priority for businesses.
Here’s how your business can balance age verification with regulatory compliance while preserving user privacy.
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
The European Union’s GDPR encompasses several key principles for age verification, including data minimisation, lawful basis for processing data, a right to be forgotten and requirements around strong security for stored data.
With this in mind, ZKP and blockchain-based verification measures are often used to maintain GDPR compliance by providing an effective solution for verifying user age without the need to store personal data.
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)
Like the GDPR, the CCPA also details strict consumer rights around the ability to access, delete and opt out of data collection completely. In addition, the regulations include provisions for data transparency, requiring businesses to clearly disclose what data is collected and why in their privacy policy. Businesses must also collect explicit opt-in consent before processing the data of users under the age of 16.
When it comes to the CCPA, one of the key compliance strategies is to ensure your business provides a clear opt-in and opt-out mechanism for users under 16 and those who don’t want their data stored, respectively. You’ll also need to ensure your verification process collects only the necessary data and that you clearly explain your data handling practices.
Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)
While the CCPA includes special provisions for under 16s, the COPPA applies specifically to online services that collect data from children under 13 and requires verifiable parental consent for data collection. Once again, businesses can only collect the necessary information and it can’t be used or shared for marketing purposes. Any data that is collected as part of the verification process must be stored securely and deleted once it’s no longer needed.
The best practice for maintaining compliance with the COPPA often involves using an age-gating system that blocks data collection for users under 13 unless parental consent is obtained. It can help to adopt privacy-focused verification methods, like blockchain-based age verification solutions, to confirm age without the need to collect personal information.
Despite the similarities across these regional regulations, businesses operating across borders must navigate the differences and maintain compliance with the relevant verification requirements. By taking a privacy-first approach to age verification, businesses can build trust with users while ensuring they comply with global regulations. This is where partnering with a verification platform, like Data Zoo, can come in handy. Our age verification solution offers a robust and dependable approach to ensuring compliance with constantly evolving global regulations.