Verifying website age requirements isn’t simple – yet it’s crucial and shouldn’t be taken lightly.
Ofcom, the UK regulatory body, has imposed a substantial £1 million fine on OnlyFans. The issue stems from the platform's age verification processes over recent years.
Given its primarily adult-oriented nature, OnlyFans must adhere to stringent guidelines regarding online security. The United Kingdom’s Online Safety Act mandates that social networking sites monitor and manage potentially hazardous material such as terrorism-related content, explicit sexual materials, and posts advocating for self-harm. This legislation places special emphasis on protecting minors from potential risks present on these platforms.
In 2022 and 2023, Ofcom reached out to the website's owner, Fenix, requesting details to evaluate the effectiveness of their third-party facial recognition software, which aims to confirm that users are at least 18 years old.
Initially, Finex claimed that it used facial recognition technology to set the challenge age at 23, determined from a live selfie submitted by the user. Visitors who appear older than this threshold must undergo an additional verification step.
Fined for inaccurate answer
In January 2024, the third-party provider notified Fenix about an issue where the challenge age limit was mistakenly set at 20 years old. This misconfiguration had persisted for over two years before being brought to attention. Following this revelation, Fenix reported the mistake to Ofcom, which then initiated an inquiry into the matter.
The mistake led to a loss of over £1 million for the firm, which was decreased by 30% since Fenix agreed with Ofcom's conclusions and resolved the issue out-of-court.
(Michael Leahy. Source: Telecoms.com. Image courtesy of Steve Gale from Unsplash)
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