John Lewis has become the first retailer to implement an artificial intelligence (AI) powered age verification system for the sale of knives online. Customers must consent to a facial scan, which the AI quickly analyses to confirm if they are over 18.
The age-verification technology was developed by the British company Yoti and is also used by social media and pornography sites. The system was trained using millions of images, deletes scans after use and claims an accuracy of within 1.3 years for 13 to 17-year-olds. Yoti highlights that its technology is more reliable than human judgment and is approved by Ofcom under the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA). Despite concerns about recognising darker skin tones, Yoti claims no significant bias exists. The system also features anti-spoofing measures to prevent manipulation of the age check.
£ - This article requires a subscription.
What is this page?
You are reading a summary article on the Privacy Newsfeed, a free resource for DPOs and other professionals with privacy or data protection responsibilities helping them stay informed of industry news all in one place. The information here is a brief snippet relating to a single piece of original content or several articles about a common topic or thread. The main contributor is listed in the top left-hand corner, just beneath the article title.
The Privacy Newsfeed monitors over 300 global publications, of which more than 5,750 summary articles have been posted to the online archive dating back to the beginning of 2020. A weekly roundup is available by email every Friday.
