Technology

While this is certainly a big step in their enshittification process, the restrictions from just not doing it don't seem so bad.

Content Filters: Discord users will need to be age-assured as adults in order to unblur sensitive content or turn off the setting.

Age-gated Spaces – Only users who are age-assured as adults will be able to access age-restricted channels, servers, and app commands.

Message Request Inbox: Direct messages from people a user may not know are routed to a separate inbox by default, and access to modify this setting is limited to age-assured adult users.

Friend Request Alerts: People will receive warning prompts for friend requests from users they may not know.

Stage Restrictions: Only age-assured adults may speak on stage in servers.

I will definitely not identify myself for them with these options. If they would implement more private methods of age authentication, maybe I would consider it, since I am currently bound to discord for a few social activities.

Well, the day it asks me for ID/face scan is the day I delete my account. Their days are numbered.

It seems like the restriction should be lifted for accounts without verification after 5 years. After all, you're not even allowed to sign up if you're under 13, so by 5 years you have to be at least 18.

I love how photo-based age verification scanning is the worst of both worlds - it destroys your anonymity, but not in a way that makes it easier to run a community where you can ban a person by their digital ID since they can just make a new one with the same face since facial recognition is too crude for that.

Discord genuinely thinks they got the users by the balls... Thing is, people move platforms extremely easily. It happened to MSN Messenger, it happened to Skype, and it'll happen to Discord too.

For those who are looking for something very similar, look at Stoat (formerly known as Revolt). Their URL is https://stoat.chat/.

only changes for the unverified:

• Channels, servers, and commands set to age-restricted will be inaccessible
• DM requests deemed "sensitive" will be inaccessible
• "Sensitive content" will be blurred
• Won't be able to become a speaker in "stage" channels, a special type where a few videoconferencers have a meeting where anyone else can watch and type but not videoconference; verified watchers can be invited to speak
• DMs from unfamiliar users will be routed to a separate "warning"

nothing else

I think this is business as usual...

Didn't they just get busted for leaking their verification data that they totally weren't keeping?

Guess I’m not using discord anymore lol

I refuse to verify my age with a face scan or government ID for an online account/profile.. It's too easy to imagine how fucked up that will go.

The more I delete profiles to platforms with ~~unwanted~~ disturbing features the more recluse I become. It must look to acquaintances that I don't care to speak (to them) but what can I do? I cannot imagine convincing even computer-literate friends to switch to something - as they will have the same problem.

Do I need to retire my Discord gaming server before I'm locked out of controlling it?

You know what doesn't require full face scan? irc

Can someone help me figure out if matrix/element would work for what I need? So far it looks decent, but my main issue is figuring out integrations/bots.

Is there a way to integrate something like PluralKit there?

"Content filtering" is just corporate jargon for subjective censorship, dynamically and discriminately restricting access to knowledge. I abhor all censorship.

Seriously, like, actually seriously, I want to believe that this time everyone will leave Discord, and not just a small group of weirdos like us who “care about privacy” and ended up on Lemmy.

Age assurance is the foundation of this new experience and is designed to respect Discord users’ privacy and choice. Discord users can choose to use facial age estimation or submit a form of identification to its vendor partners, with more options coming in the future. Additionally, Discord will implement its age inference model, a new system that runs in the background to help determine whether an account belongs to an adult, without always requiring users to verify their age. Some users may be asked to use multiple methods if more information is needed to assign an age group.

Key privacy protections of Discord’s age-assurance approach include:

• On-device processing: Video selfies for facial age estimation never leave a user’s device.
• Quick deletion: Identity documents submitted to our vendor partners are deleted quickly— in most cases, immediately after age confirmation.
• Straightforward verification: In most cases, users complete the process once and their Discord experience adapts to their verified age group. Users may be asked to use multiple methods only when more information is needed to assign an age group.
• Private status: A user’s age verification status cannot be seen by other users. 

After completing a chosen method, users will receive confirmation via a direct message from Discord’s official account. A user’s assigned age group can also be viewed at any time in “My Account” settings. Users can always go to “My Account” settings to appeal their assigned age group by retrying the process. Discord prompts users to age-assure only within Discord and currently does not send emails or text messages about its age assurance process or results.

Not happy with the face-scanning either way. Gonna have a chat with some of my personal groups about how we might move forward.

What alternative should we all switch to?

Also thinking AI fake IDs will end up being an easy way around this.

Yeah that’s a hard no from me. Want me to prove my ID? I want you to prove that you’re not gonna store it. History suggests otherwise.

Not that I want to use your platform anyway.