Effective age verification has long been a concern within the gaming industry, together with government, policy makers, and parents of children. These concerns have seemingly worsened with stories of minors having recently been given access to casino gaming floors.
Age verification online is an area that currently a lacks stringent protocols and where trust is being assumed or exploited.
New measures are also needed for the businesses themselves. In particular, as the online economy continues to boom and the world generally becomes more digital, businesses need to have legal certainty that all their users are of appropriate age to consume their content.
To safeguard younger people, in many parts of the world age verification systems are becoming more and more established and are becoming the new standard. As an example, Incode, a ‘biotrust’ (biometrics-based) platform, has been approved by The Commission for the Protection of Minors in Media, or KJM, for age verification services.
The committee consists of representatives of the German Federal Government and the Lander.
The U.S. originating technology verifies the users’ age by validating their identification card against a ‘selfie’ (a digital photograph of the user). The solution provides visual guides to the user to ensure the identification card is centered before automating the capture of the photographic image document. The technology uses artificial intelligence as part of the age verification process.
According to Incode, CEO, Ricardo Amper the aim is to be able to; “Protect minors in Germany, specifically reducing underage gambling, while at the same time improving sign-up rates for eligible players.”
In addition, Amper adds: “Age verification online is an area that currently lacks stringent protocols and where trust is being assumed or exploited. As the online economy continues to boom and the world generally becomes more digital, businesses need to have legal certainty that all their users are of appropriate age to consume their content. Current age verification solutions are not working, and we can fix that.”
The same solutions need to be replicated in the U.S. to prevent entry to minors in gaming facilities. In addition to meeting AML (Anti-Money Laundering) and KYC (Know Your Customer) compliance requirements, such operators need customers to have a smooth, secure, and frictionless sign-up and age verification experience.
