Age Verification in 2026: Where Are We Now?

Age verification has been one of the most debated aspects of online child safety for over a decade. In 2026, the UK is further along than most countries in implementing meaningful age assurance, but significant challenges remain. The Online Safety Act, which received Royal Assent in 2023, gives Ofcom the power to require platforms to implement age verification or age estimation technology. Ofcom's codes of practice, published in late 2025, set out the expectations for platforms: services likely to be accessed by children must take steps to prevent them from encountering harmful content, and services that host pornographic content must implement robust age verification. The technology landscape has matured considerably. Facial age estimation — which uses AI to estimate a person's age from a selfie without storing the image — has achieved accuracy rates that make it viable for most use cases. Digital identity solutions, including integration with the UK's developing digital identity framework, offer another route. Some platforms are exploring open banking verification, where a user's age is confirmed through their bank without sharing any other personal data. However, challenges persist. Privacy campaigners raise legitimate concerns about surveillance and data collection. Implementation varies widely across platforms, with smaller services struggling to meet the technical requirements. And determined teenagers will always find workarounds. The consensus among experts is that age verification is a necessary but insufficient measure — it works best as part of a broader safety ecosystem that includes platform design, content moderation, and family engagement.