Discord, the popular platform for gamers to communicate online, postponed its controversial age verification policy after swift backlash from users with concerns about their privacy.
The global rollout of the system is delayed to the second half of 2026, Discord's Chief Technology Officer and co-founder Stanislav Vishnevskiy wrote in a blog post this week acknowledging the company "missed the mark."
"Many of you are worried that this is just another Big Tech company finding new ways to collect your personal data. That we're creating a problem to justify invasive solutions," he wrote. "I get that skepticism. It's earned, not just toward us, but toward the entire tech industry. But that's not what we're doing."
A Discord display stands March 22, 2023, at the company's booth at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco.
Discord, which says it has more than 200 million active users, will continue to meet specific legal obligations it has for age verification of users, the company said, but the global expansion of age verification will only come after it makes changes to the initial policy it laid out in early February.
The company announced this month that it would roll out an age verification policy in March that would include face scanning or requests for an ID upload for users it could not determine were adults.
That drew swift ire from users. Many pointed to a recent security breach of a third-party provider Discord worked with that exposed government ID photos of up to 70,000 Discord users.
Vishnevskiy referenced the security breach in the blog post, writing that he understood that incident added to users' skepticism, but he emphasized the company no longer works with that vendor and has rigorous standards for its partners.
"Every vendor we work with goes through a security and privacy review before integration," he wrote. "That includes contractual limits on data use, and strict retention and deletion requirements. Information submitted for age verification is stored only for the minimum time necessary, which in most cases means it's deleted immediately. If a vendor doesn't pass, we don't work with them."
One of the vendors that didn't meet the mark was Persona, an identity verification service. Vishnevskiy said Discord ran a limited test with Persona in the United Kingdom in January. The company was not able to meet Discord's standard for facial age estimation, Vishnevskiy wrote, which stipulates that the estimation "must be performed entirely on-device, meaning your biometric data never leaves your phone."
The company distanced itself from Persona after that relationship also became the subject of online criticism.
Persona is backed by the venture capital firm Founders Fund, which is run by Palantir Technologies co-founder Peter Thiel. Thiel and Palantir are often criticized for the company's partnerships with the government for surveillance purposes, with Palantir recently inking an agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to streamline the process of identifying and deporting people.
In a statement posted to LinkedIn, Persona co-founder and CEO Rick Song wrote that Discord's claims about Persona's capabilities were not accurate, emphasizing that the company offers on-device age verification.
"I'm fine if they don't want to use us. I'm not okay with them publicly saying untrue things about our age assurance technologies to try to shift responsibility away from their own decisions," he wrote. "Doing so further erodes trust."
The backlash to the original policy and even the revised version came even though Vishnevskiy wrote that for "90%+ of users, nothing changes."
Discord is able to proactively determine the ages of the vast majority of users by looking at account-level signals. Those include how long the account existed, whether there is a payment method on file, the types of servers a user is in and general patterns of account activity, Vishnevskiy wrote. He emphasized the company does not read messages, analyze conversations or look at account content to estimate users' ages.
For the minority of users whose ages Discord cannot determine, the company will work to offer more options beyond face scanning and requesting an ID, including credit card verification. The company will "complete and expand" alternative options before rolling out the new system, he wrote.
Users who choose not to verify their age will get to keep their account, servers, friends list, direct messages and voice chat but will not be able to access age-restricted content or change certain default safety settings designed to protect teens, Vishnevskiy wrote.
Discord promised users it will publish a detailed post explaining how its automatic age determination systems work and will document every verification vendor and their practices on its website.
How to take a break from social media
Be easy on yourself and ask for help about social media use
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"If you're reading this article, kudos to you for thinking about reevaluating social media," Agarwal said Trying to meet your goals is all about celebrating the small wins.
At the least, set small benchmarks for yourself like spending 10 minutes less on social media than the day before. The right amount of social media time is different for everyone since some people actually use these apps to brand and help market themselves. Find your own social media sweet spot, and remember, even if you scroll too much on social media one day, you can try and meet your goal tomorrow.
Another way to keep you on track is to share your goal with someone you trust. A friend or loved one who can kindly nudge you when they notice you've been on social media for awhile.
Helpful exercise to remind you what you're missing by scrolling
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Scrolling through social media while hanging out with friends isn't uncommon nowadays, but when you think about how unengaged you are in those moments, it can put social media use into perspective.
Agarwal suggests the next time you're in a room with others at a family or friends gathering and you see yourself scrolling through social media instead of engaging with others, take a minute to physically remove yourself from the room and isolate in another room. Listen and feel how much you may be missing out on.
"What that does is it gives your brain a signal. If you force yourself to leave the room, you realize how much you're using that app and missing out on other people," Agarwal said. "It's a good physical reminder of being present in the moment and not on your on your phone and scrolling through social media."
Use your phone's screen-time tracking feature and limit social media use
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Most smart phones nowadays track your screen-time and usage already. It's a good idea to figure out your average screen time per day so you have a benchmark that you can work on.
On iPhone, you can go into your "Screen Time" settings, which displays the amount of time you spend on each app and allows you to put timers on specific apps to limit how long you're on them. Android phones have similar features in the "Digital Wellbeing" settings. Additionally, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok offer the same features within the app settings themselves.
Physically distance yourself from your phone and apps
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When you're at home and have free time, put your phone in a drawer or somewhere you can't see it. Oftentimes limiting the ability to quickly and easily pick up your phone is enough to keep you off of social media, said Agarwal. If your phone is what keeps your hands from fidgeting, try to have some objects around the house that relieve stress, like a stress ball, fidget toy or yarn and crochet hooks.
Hide your social media apps on your phone by placing the app on the second or third page of your home screen or bury the app inside an "app folder" with a bunch of others. When you're waiting in line or have a free five minutes, instead of grabbing your phone — take in the view, practice some breathing exercises or read a book.
Benefits of taking a social media break
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Ever hear of "text neck?" It's the result of looking down at our phones when scrolling or texting, straining the neck muscles over a long period of time. Taking a break from social media helps relieve neck pain and gives your eyes a break from bright screens.
People may also be more connected than ever through social media, but a 2018 University of Pennsylvania study found that people who limit their time on social media experience less depression and feelings of loneliness.
Taking a break from social media will give you better sleep, too. Research suggests that nighttime use of social media is driven by FOMO (fear of missing out), and keeps people scrolling longer at night instead of going to sleep.
Reevaluate what you want out of social media
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What is the reason that brought you onto social media? This is the question Agarwal said to ask yourself when trying to figure out if it's time to take a social media break. If you're not getting the same satisfaction from the reason you use social media, it may be time to look for alternatives.
If you joined social media to...
1. Find community: Look for clubs and groups in your neighborhood where you can meet and interact with others IRL (in real life).
2. Be inspired: Consume other forms of media like magazines, books, podcasts, movies or live events.
3. Buy and sell things: Try using other apps, like OfferUp or NextDoor, or visiting local events and marketplaces in person.
Two and a half hours.
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Two and a half hours — that's the average amount of time people spend on social media each day.
It may not sound like a lot, but that time can really add up — and at what cost? Social media has proven negative effects on mental health (especially for teens), self-image and for some is a huge time-waster.
University of Penn's Anish Agarwal, an emergency physician, researcher, and deputy director for the Center for Digital Health, said it's important to constantly be reevaluating the role social media plays in daily life.
The bottom line: taking a break from social media is healthy for you. Read on for guidance and tools to help you limit screen time on these apps.
