Discord clarifies it 'is not requiring everyone to complete a face scan or upload an ID' and will 'confirm your age group using information we already have'

If you don't like the idea of giving your data to Discord to enter adult servers, the good news is you've likely already given enough information that it doesn't need to do that. I'm sure you're happy to find out.

In its latest blog, Discord clarifies "it is not requiring everyone to complete a face scan or upload an ID to use Discord" and that the "vast majority of people can continue using Discord exactly as they do today, without ever being asked to confirm their age."

See, it turns out you've likely already given Discord enough data for it to accurately guess your age and allow you access. "For the majority of adult users, we will be able to confirm your age group using information we already have. We use age prediction to determine, with high confidence, when a user is an adult. This allows many adults to access age-appropriate features without completing an explicit age check."

We’ve seen some questions about our age assurance update and we want to share more clarity. We know how important these changes are to our community.Here’s what we want you to know:‣‣‣ 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲 𝗮… https://t.co/IdjRn06c5AFebruary 10, 2026

For me, that will be mostly the names of my friends and about four dozen servers I joined for a specific purpose and never came back to. Does that seem like the behaviour of a 20-something-year-old geek? Probably.

Discord is taking criticism for the decision to roll out ID verification, not only because it requires a level of data many are uncomfortable with sharing, but also because, mere months ago, 70,000 verification ID photos appear to have been leaked in a Discord security breach. That includes names, usernames, emails, credit cards, and IP addresses.

At the time, Discord said all "affected users globally have been contacted, and we continue to work closely with law enforcement, data protection authorities, and external security experts. We’ve secured the affected systems and ended work with the compromised vendor. We take our responsibility to protect your personal data seriously and understand the concern this may cause."

Though mitigating factors were put in place, the more companies that have your data, the more likely you are to be caught up when bad actors strike. This is without mentioning what a company can do with your data, even when it's entirely secure. In my case, however, a bad actor would simply get a photo of Norma Reedus for my verification photo. One step ahead of the curve, me.

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James is a more recent PC gaming convert, often admiring graphics cards, cases, and motherboards from afar. It was not until 2019, after just finishing a degree in law and media, that they decided to throw out the last few years of education, build their PC, and start writing about gaming instead. In that time, he has covered the latest doodads, contraptions, and gismos, and loved every second of it. Hey, it’s better than writing case briefs.

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