Just got an email from google play saying all apps need to age verify users in Texas?
Grok is this real
Worse, google is changing Android in Sep 2026 to prevent loading your own apps. Google will test all app store apps for age verification and remove any that don't meet the requirement. F-droid and developer mode will be history. I've been using my laptop to make calls, but I'm sure the infection will go there also.
I'm using Fedora - and as a US corp, they have to figure out something. So far, their lawyers parsing of the decrees says the OS has to present an API to webpages - but no actual age verification is possible or required. The admin (e.g. parent) might find it useful to set the age range for their child's user account.
But that can also work to mark them as a target for predators. My approach was strict whitelisting for the kids. If they wanted a new website, they had to petition me to whitelist it. Same with email. Today, matrix protocol is easily configured to talk only to whitelisted homeservers (e.g. NOT matrix.org). So kids can have their own domain managed by parents as to who they can talk to. (E.g. family domain can talk to anyone, kids domain talks only to approved family domains.)
I'm using Fedora - and as a US corp, they have to figure out something. So far, their lawyers parsing of the decrees says the OS has to present an API to webpages - but no actual age verification is possible or required. The admin (e.g. parent) might find it useful to set the age range for their child's user account.
But that can also work to mark them as a target for predators. My approach was strict whitelisting for the kids. If they wanted a new website, they had to petition me to whitelist it. Same with email. Today, matrix protocol is easily configured to talk only to whitelisted homeservers (e.g. NOT matrix.org). So kids can have their own domain managed by parents as to who they can talk to. (E.g. family domain can talk to anyone, kids domain talks only to approved family domains.)
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