The European Commission has opened formal proceedings against Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, and XVideos for failing to comply with the Digital Services Act (DSA). The law, in force since 2024, requires platforms to protect minors, remove illegal content quickly, and manage systemic risks. The Commission found that these sites’ one-click “I’m over 18” buttons do not meet the standard. Snapchat also faces scrutiny for exposing minors to grooming, illegal goods, and age-restricted products.
The DSA carries fines of up to 10% of global annual turnover. For Very Large Online Platforms (those with over 45 million EU users) the message is direct: fix your age checks or face penalties. Social media, gaming, and content platforms are all within scope if they fail to keep minors out of restricted areas.
How the new age checks will work
The EU’s proposed solution is a privacy-first digital wallet called the Age Verification Blueprint. Users verify their age once using a national ID, passport, or banking app. After that, the wallet provides a cryptographic yes/no answer to whether the person is over 18. No birthdate, name, or extra data is shared. Each site receives a single-use token, preventing cross-platform tracking.
This system is designed to feed into the broader EU Digital Identity Wallets (EUDI Wallets), scheduled for rollout by the end of 2026. Europeans would eventually handle age checks, identity verification, and driver’s licenses from a single app. Five member states are piloting the technology now. France and Denmark are furthest along, while Greece, Spain, and Italy are still in early stages.
What this means for gaming and social platforms
Platforms like Roblox, Discord, and Reddit currently use third-party providers like Persona, which rely on data-heavy methods such as facial recognition and document scans. The EU wants to move away from that model entirely, pushing for open-source, privacy-preserving systems where a trusted third party confirms a user’s age without the site ever seeing their documents.
The US approach, where companies sometimes store biometric data for years, has already shown its risks. In February 2026, Persona reportedly exposed thousands of files online, though the company said it was test data. The EU’s model is designed to avoid those privacy problems entirely.
What happens next
Major EU-facing platforms will need to upgrade their age verification systems or risk substantial fines. The digital wallet rollout could face delays in lagging member states, but the regulatory direction is clear. The era of self-declared age confirmation is ending across Europe, with real verification systems taking its place. Gamers and content creators should expect stricter access controls paired with less data sharing.