Discord has informed UK users that they may be part of an experiment using the age-assurance vendor Persona for verification, where submitted data is temporarily stored unlike previous promises. This change has raised privacy concerns among users, particularly due to Persona's links to investor Peter Thiel and his surveillance firm Palantir. The update is part of a broader global rollout of mandatory age verification starting in early March.
Discord announced a "teen-by-default" approach last week, requiring global users to undergo age verification via facial age estimation or identification to access certain features, such as age-gated channels, servers, app commands, speaking on stages, and messages from unknowns. The phased rollout begins in early March, building on prior changes in Australia and the UK. Without verification, users cannot bypass sensitive content filters.
Initially, Discord stated that "video selfies submitted for facial age estimation will never leave a user's device," and identification documents would be "deleted quickly"—in most cases, immediately after confirmation—by vendor partners. However, UK users have noted in Discord's FAQ that they "may be part of an experiment" with Persona, where selfies and details are temporarily stored for up to seven days before deletion. The company specifies that "all details are blurred except your photo and date of birth, so only what's truly needed for age verification is used."
This follows the UK's Online Safety Act compliance deadline last July, which prompted platforms like Reddit, Spotify, and X to implement stricter measures, including facial scans or government ID. Discord's previous partner, k-ID, offered assurances that video selfies never leave devices and documents are not permanently stored, but users reportedly found ways to bypass it. Persona, founded in 2018 for identity detection and anti-fraud, has been used by Reddit and Roblox. Its major investor is the Founders Fund, led by Peter Thiel, co-founder of PayPal and Palantir—a surveillance firm since 2003 used by US agencies including ICE for tools like ELITE to monitor for raids. Thiel's name appears over 2000 times in Epstein files.
Discord described the Persona prompts as part of a "limited test" that has concluded, per statements to media. Users remain concerned about data security, especially after an October hack of a third-party support system exposed some 70,000 users' government IDs. Eurogamer reached out to Discord for comment.
