this post was submitted on 08 Mar 2026
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    If you can feel a very small tinge of existential horror when you read the words "try to", congratulations, you're a true *nix devotee.

    If legislators get grumpy about this, just gently thwap them with your handy copy of The Unix Haters Handbook and tell them you're working as hard as you can under the circumstances.

    top 50 comments
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    [–] highball@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago

    Get fucked, that's my age.

    [–] raicon@lemmy.world 196 points 6 days ago (10 children)

    Age verification is just paving way for things a lot worse: globally unique identification.

    They ( politicians ) will weaponize the inefficiencies in this implementation to push for an online verification later on.

    And of course Peter Thiel will be somewhere in the middle

    [–] db2@lemmy.world 122 points 6 days ago (3 children)

    Your dissent has been noted for later enforcement action, Citizen 1d887190-bfe4-4a22-ae6d-4b519a9c5483.

    [–] definitely_AI@feddit.online 45 points 6 days ago (1 children)

    This makes me nauseous because of the reality.

    [–] db2@lemmy.world 20 points 6 days ago (1 children)

    Yeah, it felt a little ominous posting it the way things are going.

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    [–] Zephorah@discuss.online 134 points 6 days ago (5 children)

    It’s not about age. It’s about uniquely identifying everyone who uses a computer.

    [–] definitely_AI@feddit.online 53 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

    But think of all the pedophiles it will stop! Surely you don't want pedophiles to get away with their crimes*? What are you, a pedophile?

    (* T&C apply, if you are a +1B shareholder, please disregard)

    [–] gabbath@lemmy.world 11 points 6 days ago (1 children)

    +1B shareholder

    Yep, because we all know the last people who would be pedophiles are billionaires.

    (/s obviously)

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    [–] brokenwing@discuss.tchncs.de 104 points 6 days ago (7 children)

    I recently read an article from the creaters of PopOS. In that they raise a vaild point. If a child installs a virtualization software (say with the concent of an adult for educational purposes), then they can but browse internet through the VM, with them being the root user, pretending to be adults. It defeats the whole purpose of such verification methods. So their plan would to stick with ID based ones.

    I think this was never about age verification, but to uniquely fingerprint every person using internet and to keep accountability.

    Lets face it, the internet you knew is dead.

    [–] tdawg@lemmy.world 55 points 6 days ago (1 children)

    I'll just do what I'm always done since I was 10

    "How old are you?"

    "115 years young of course"

    [–] BlindFrog@lemmy.world 26 points 6 days ago (1 children)

    1/1/1900, just celebrated my 126th

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    These laws are not written by the technically literate. They are written by attorneys based on the whims of old legislators who think that Siri is a real woman that they are talking to.

    While the people who write the laws are competent, the legislators are not.

    At the state level, it's even worse because they are often given legislation carefully written by lobbyists and special interest groups.

    If you have any inkling to run for office, please consider doing so because we need smarter people in every branch of government.

    [–] far_university1990@reddthat.com 24 points 6 days ago (1 children)

    Lets face it, the internet you knew is dead.

    Friendship ended with IP. Now I2P is friend.

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    [–] thethunderwolf@lemmy.dbzer0.com 28 points 5 days ago (12 children)

    "Must be outside of California, Colorado, and Brazil to download or use this install ISO"

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    [–] Vocalize8711@lemmy.world 31 points 5 days ago (2 children)

    By definition of this new law, is Linux an OS? It is technically just the kernel. At what layer of the software stack does the responsibility of age verification lie at?

    [–] thethunderwolf@lemmy.dbzer0.com 9 points 5 days ago (1 children)

    Linux is the kernel, GNU is the operating system, make demands to them
    GNU is only a component of the GNU/Linux system, make demands to distributors
    But this is a distribution of Linux, make demands to Linux
    But Linux is the kernel...

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    [–] dasrael@lemmy.zip 22 points 5 days ago (2 children)

    We don't comply, is what we do. We ignore stupid fuckin' laws made by idiots who clearly have no idea what consultation is. It's time open source tech starts to diversify where it keeps its HQ and base of operations.

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    [–] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 20 points 5 days ago

    Or maybe we shouldn't do age verification

    [–] baner@lemmy.zip 25 points 6 days ago (5 children)

    Using linux is not proof enough?

    [–] Virtvirt588@lemmy.world 16 points 5 days ago

    If you're using Linux you're already 99% smarter than the people making these stupid laws. At this point your age doesnt matter.

    [–] boneyards@lemmy.world 11 points 6 days ago (3 children)

    I used my first distro at like 13 lol.

    [–] Virtvirt588@lemmy.world 15 points 5 days ago (1 children)

    That's why these laws are completely delusional. Being a kid is one thing, but being a teenager is another thing. Laws like this disregard teenagers - and later on expect them to know everything at 18. What a stupid world.

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    [–] DaddleDew@lemmy.world 43 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (6 children)

    The problem with that whole situation is the way the law is written the developer is the one held responsible if a child circumvents the check to access adult content. Therefore, developers will have to pay hefty fines unless they:

    -1: Have a way to positively make sure the person enters their age is telling the truth; and

    -2: Lock this value from being changed by the user afterwards.

    Or: Region lock the OS.

    One can see how incredibly problematic this is for both privacy and true ownership and control over your own machine. There is also a lot that needs to be figured out in the law such as what will happen when someone inevitably finds a way to hack the system to circumvent it, especially the region lock. Ultimately, big tech has deep pockets and can shrug off the fines but small nonprofit open source projects will be killed by them.

    This law is specifically designed to kill nonprofit-run and private software like Linux.

    [–] tkk13909@sopuli.xyz 24 points 6 days ago

    Making the vendor culpable for a user bypassing a software lock is absurd but then again so is this entire bill.

    [–] yardy_sardley@lemmy.ca 22 points 6 days ago

    All of this seems impossible to enforce in the FOSS ecosystem. People can just fork the software and remove any restriction they don't like. That's kind of the whole point of free software. Users are free to use their devices however they like, including in ways that are not intended by the devloper.

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    [–] neclimdul@lemmy.world 23 points 6 days ago (1 children)

    Pass.

    Its my computer, I own it, gtfo and let me use it how ever I want.

    [–] pupbiru@aussie.zone 26 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (8 children)

    sure, but if an application β€œrequires” age verification for whatever reason, would you prefer the functional equivalent to clicking β€œi’m over 18 pinky promise” as a standard, or they use biometric data that they all implement differently and then there’s like 33.7 leaks in the next 6 months?

    like the whole thing is bullshit, but a file on disk is a wink wink nudge nudge sure we are compliant bud

    the true unix way: if you text editor you own the world

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    export AGE=OLDENOUGH
    
    [–] observantTrapezium@lemmy.ca 30 points 6 days ago (1 children)

    Akahually at my work we used a third party authentication PAM module that uses the gecos field for username mapping.

    [–] bacon_pdp@lemmy.world 21 points 6 days ago (1 children)

    Looks like your company shall be sacrificed for standards compliance reasons.

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    [–] Zozano@aussie.zone 13 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (2 children)

    #/etc/nixos/modules/age-verify.nix

    { config, lib, pkgs, ... }:

    {

    services.age-verification = {

    enable = true;

    age = 18;

    };

    }

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    [–] Hiro8811@lemmy.world 9 points 5 days ago (4 children)

    Or you can just refuse to operate there, if enough developers do that It'll force them scrap it.

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    [–] bhamlin@lemmy.world 20 points 6 days ago

    The best part is that this can be POSIX compliant too!

    [–] ColeSloth@discuss.tchncs.de 14 points 6 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

    Just set up an audio based check, prompting the user to make dial up modem connection sounds into the microphone. If you do it well enough, you're good and old.

    [–] kittykillinit@lemy.lol 4 points 4 days ago

    This is another step towards having a digital ID that is required to use computers at all.

    [–] cupcakezealot@piefed.blahaj.zone 6 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

    groups katy

    katy : katy sudo adult

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