Support NeoGAF

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Source - PCGamer

In 2023, the Entertainment Software Rating Board, along with digital identity company Yoti and "youth marketing solutions" provider Superawesome, filed a proposal with the FTC for a new "verifiable parental consent mechanism" called Privacy-Protective Facial Age Estimation. The FTC has now issued its response to that proposal, and the answer is "no"—for now.

The ESRB's proposed technology stirred feathers almost immediately, and understandably so: The idea of having to essentially submit a selfie to prove to a machine that you're old enough to play GTA 6 is inherently intrusive, and that's before you even get into questions of technological bias and whether or not the thing would work well enough to justify the headaches that would inevitably erupt for at least some users.

The ESRB moved quickly to reassure the public that the system is not meant to identify individuals but simply to estimate age, and that it would not store any data after the analysis was complete. It was also not intended to ensure compliance with the ESRB's age ratings, but rather with COPPA—the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act—a US privacy law that requires "verifiable parental consent" before companies are allowed to collect or share data from children under the age of 13.

Unlike the ESRB rating system, which is voluntary, COPPA is legally binding, and breaking that law can be awfully expensive. In 2022, for instance, Epic Games agreed to pay a $275 million penalty for COPPA violations, while in 2023 Microsoft ate a $20 million fine for violations of its own on Xbox Live. So you can understand why companies might be eager to find a low-effort system that enables them to at least say, "Hey, we tried."

But for now, the ESRB's proposed solution isn't going to be it. In a ruling issued on March 29, the FTC said that after receiving more than 350 comments on the proposal, it voted unanimously to deny the application. The denial was issued without prejudice, meaning the ESRB and its associates can resubmit the application in the future.

That reflects the reason for the denial, which came not because the FTC has concerns about millions of people submitting selfies to an AI-powered machine dedicated to government oversight, but because it's not clear how (or, I suppose, if) it will work.

In a letter sent to the ESRB group, the FTC noted that Yoti had submitted a "facial age estimation model" to the National Institute of Standards and Technology in September 2023, but the NIST's evaluation has not yet been delivered. On March 22 the ESRB asked for a 90-day delay of any ruling on the matter to allow for the NIST's report to be delivered, but because there's no indication the report will show up within that time frame, the FTC has simply decided to toss the whole thing.

Frankly I think the world would be a better place if this whole idea went away completely, but that seems unlikely. In its denial, the FTC said it "is taking no position on the merits of the application," and effectively encouraged a re-submission once the NIST report is finished, "when the Commission anticipates that additional information will be available to assist the Commission and the public in better understanding age verification technologies and the application."

In a statement provided to PC Gamer, an ESRB representative said it was "disappointed" that the FTC didn't issue a "substantive decision" or allow for a further delay in the application.

"The ESRB, Yoti, and Kids Web Services [formerly part of Superawesome, now owned by Epic Games following the Superawesome spinoff in September 2023] filed the application in June 2023, and the Commission twice extended its decision on the application beyond the 120-day period set forth in the COPPA Rule," the rep said. "The Commission’s letter indicates that it believes it would be helpful to be able to review, as part of its decision-making process, a report about facial age estimation models that is anticipated to be released by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in April.

"Unfortunately, instead of accommodating our request to stay its decision for another 90 days to give the Commission sufficient time for consideration of the NIST report, the FTC declined the application without prejudice. In light of the FTC’s statements in its recent COPPA Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (and elsewhere) welcoming innovation in VPC methods, we remain hopeful that facial age estimation and other innovative technologies will be considered COPPA-compliant when used to obtain verifiable parental consent in the near future."

 

[Zathalus]

Good, that shit can fuck right off.

 

[GHG]

To even suggest something like this is dystopian as fuck.

Jokers.

 

[sloppyjoe_gamer]

What if i'm 12 but identify as 25?

 

[notjeffgoldblum]

The face test works so well there totally are not any laws that prohibit restaurants or bars or strip clubs must abide by.

 

[nkarafo]

Fuck you if you have a babyface then?

 

[Holammer]

Whomever came up with the tech should sell it to China instead.

 

[Skifi28]

Whomever came up with the tech should sell it to China instead.

That's 10 years too late, China is too far gone at this point.

 

[YeulEmeralda]

Discrimination against all 1000 year old lolis.

 

[ReBurn]

Fuck you if you have a babyface then?

Correct

 

[The Cockatrice]

Kids can just ask their parents or put a picture of any old person in front of the scanner lmao. This is the dumbest idea on the planet and it only serves to be intrusive.

 

[RoboFu]

Well I should hope so. That's right out of some dystopia sci-fi movie .

 

[Dr. Wilkinson]

Fuck you if you have a babyface then?

Umm I don’t like it either, but I’m sure it works better than that. LOL

 

[Kilau]

The government:
"You aren't going to store the data for us to keep?"

 

[Barakov]

Good. This shouldn't have been an idea in the first place.

 

[delfrickintree]

I'll stick with drinking a mountain dew verification can, thanks

 

[CoreyFlawless]

Umm hell no

 

[ZehDon]

"Your honour, the AI clearly told my client the girl was over 18."

 

[Gameplay Gods Bless]

Source - PCGamer

This shit is creepy as fuck. The future is grim.

 

[intbal]

A sad day for concerned parents everywhere.

It's absolutely crucial that we protect children from filth like this:

 

[Neon Xenon]

This is an insane proposal that should have been shot down before it got far enough to be seen by any government official.

 

[Kuranghi]

I'm 37 and I look 25ish, every day at work a guy in his 40s will say I "wouldn't have been around back then, but we had these big-backed TVs...".

Yes I had both a CRT monitor and CRT TV, thank you "old man" who is 6 years older than me, but looks 20 years older because I have no wife & kids and I don't go out in the sun much.

He's winning on happiness though... maybe.

 

[Dr. Claus]

I am 30 and I look 14. Some folks just look younger than they are, and some look older than they are. That isn’t to say anything about how this goes against all natural privacy laws and there is zero reason for any company to need to scan the user’s face.

 

[Dirk Benedict]

A sad day for concerned parents everywhere.

It's absolutely crucial that we protect children from filth like this:

That brow is unholy blasphemy.

 

[IAmRei]

I have face of twenty although i had forty... How can i survive the check then...

People often call me as college student here then they are quite surprised as they are below my age. And i had friend who looks like student as well, but she is 3 years older than me. Some asian have baby face far younger than their real age.

In otherhand, i got an intern, who looks like 45 but he is 21...

 

[Kamina]

Good
Lets try to prevent Cyberpunk as long as possible

 

[Hudo]

It is quite terrifying that they even suggested shit like this in the first place...

 

[tamago84]

Just taken tren and test. Instant age to 50 regardless of age

 

[xrnzaaas]

Meanwhile China is taking notes.

 

[Jack Package]

Meanwhile China is taking notes.

You mean blatantly copying the patent wholesale

 

[Spukc]

Fuck you if you have a babyface then?

Man the fuck up
Eat more chicken