Age verification laws are proliferating fast across the United States and around the world, creating a dangerous and confusing tangle of rules about what we’re all allowed to see and do online. That's why today, we're launching EFF.org/Age, a one-stop shop for users seeking to understand what these laws actually do, what’s at stake, why EFF opposes all forms of age verification, how to protect yourself, and how to join the fight for a free, open, private, and yes—safe—internet.

One of the issues with “age verification” is that an effect of the suggested technologies is that they ultimatively take control of your computer. In the suggested form, they require elements that are not controlled by you, the user. It is like replacing the lock to your home’s main door, for which YOU (and only you) have the keys, with an electronic, remotely controlled lock, controlled by goverments, which can lock out at any time.