UK May Require “AI Face Scan” To View Online Porn

Ars Technica reports:

AI face detection now counts among the tools that could be used to help adult sites effectively estimate UK user ages and block minors from accessing pornography, the UK’s Office of Communications said in a press release on Tuesday. The only foreseeable problem, Ofcom noted: There’s little evidence that the AI method of age estimation will be fair, reliable, or effective.

The UK’s legal age to watch porn is 18. To enforce that restriction, under the Online Safety Act, Ofcom will soon require all apps and sites displaying adult content to introduce so-called “age assurance” systems that verify and/or estimate user ages.

Seemingly, this option would require users to take a selfie to access adult content. If the face scan suggests the user is under 25, “that user would undergo a second age-check via an alternative method” approved by Ofcom.

Read the full article.

Unproven AI face scans may estimate age for porn access in UK https://t.co/Lm4RmlDsGr

— Ars Technica (@arstechnica) December 5, 2023