Articles

An collection of images displaying the different ways that you can prove your age. The images shown represent facial age estimation, Digital IDs, age checks with an ID, credit card checks and checks using a third-party provider.

How can I prove my age online?

You may have noticed that you’re being asked to prove your age more often online. This may be when you’re signing up for new streaming services, buying something online, making a new social media account or trying to access adult content. The UK’s Online Safety Act comes into effect on 25th July. It states that ticking a box saying “I’m over 18” is no longer good enough to keep children safe online. As a result, platforms must bring in stronger age checks for their users. It’s the responsibility of each platform to decide which age checking methods to accept.

10 min read
6 million digital ID app downloads in the UK

Over 6 million UK Digital ID downloads

We’re excited to share that our Digital ID apps have now been downloaded over six million times in the UK! 🎉 A huge thank you to everyone who has chosen one of our Digital ID apps – Yoti ID, Post Office EasyID and Lloyds Bank Smart ID. Whether you’re proving your age or identity, swapping verified details with others, or taking more control over your personal data, our Digital IDs are helping millions of people prove who they are.    Privacy-preserving age checks You will probably notice that you’re being asked to prove your age more often online. This

3 min read

Age assurance: the facts

Around the world, regulators are introducing online safety and age checking laws to protect minors online. But some people believe that age assurance can’t be done without risking our privacy. In reality, the challenge of checking someone’s age online in a privacy-preserving way has been solved. In this paper, we address some of the common concerns around age assurance. Read the facts

1 min read

How accurate can facial age estimation get?

Facial age estimation using machine learning has advanced significantly in recent years. But, a common and fair question still arises: How accurate can it really be? Can a system look at your face and accurately guess your age, especially when humans often get it wrong? The short answer is that it’s very accurate – but not perfect. We explain why.   The myth of 100% accuracy It’s important to set realistic expectations. No facial age estimation model can achieve 100% accuracy across all ages.  Human aging is highly individual and shaped by many external factors, especially as we get

6 min read
An image of Robin with accompanying text that reads "Thoughts from our CEO, Robin Tombs, June 2025".

Thoughts from our CEO

The BritCard debate heats up as digital ID adoption grows Just a few months after the UK Government introduced a voluntary digital ID wallet, some influential voices within Labour are already pushing to make it mandatory. They’ve also suggested rebranding it as the ‘BritCard app’ or ‘BritCard digital ID wallet’. In the 2 years between late 2025 and late 2027, I believe many (potentially a majority) of the UK’s 57 million adults will get a UK Government digital ID wallet. From late 2025, users will be able to access their mobile driving licence details. By the end of

7 min read
An image of the Yoti logo. Underneath reads "Yoti responds to the Supreme Court decision on Free Speech Coalition vs Paxton".

The Supreme Court rules in favour of age verification

The question of whether states can require age checks on adult websites has reached a turning point in the US courts. In Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton, the case challenged Texas’s H.B. 1181 law, which required commercial websites that publish sexually explicit content to verify the ages of their visitors to prevent minors from accessing pornography. One of the big discussion points has been whether, in 2025, it is still too burdensome for US adults to prove age privately compared to 20 years ago – especially when privacy-preserving age verification tools have advanced significantly.  The Supreme Court has upheld

3 min read