3 min read
Online Age Verification: Can the Internet Actually Keep Nicotine Away From Kids?
Online nicotine sales require age verification—but the verification systems are porous. Minors can circumvent them. The technology exists for robust online age verification. The political will to mandate it does not.
A 16-year-old uses a parent's ID to pass an online age verification check and orders vaping products. The verification system worked—it confirmed the ID was valid. It didn't confirm the person using the ID was the person who owned it. **Robust online age verification—biometric checks, multi-factor authentication, age-estimation technology—exists. It's not required. The current standard (upload an ID or check a box) is theater: it creates the appearance of age verification without achieving the substance.**
