This week, YouTube rolled out automatic age verification in the US. Users who the company’s AI system determines may be under 18 are forced to provide their ID or a full biometric scan just to watch certain videos. YouTube is the latest major tech platform to preemptively normalize invasive identity verification for everyday online activity—and it’s a disaster.
This new identity verification system sets a dangerous precedent. It builds a surveillance infrastructure that normalizes the tracking of legal and previously anonymous content consumption—all under the guise of child safety.
On this week’s Free Speech Friday, I explore why the preemptive AI age and identity verification used by YouTube and other tech companies like Instagram and Roblox is so harmful and how it could change YouTube forever.