Concordium debuts app for anonymous online age checks amid UK rules backlash

Layer-1 proof-of-stake blockchain Concordium launched a mobile app that allows users to verify their age without disclosing their identity.

According to a Tuesday announcement shared with Cointelegraph, the new solution — available as a mobile application for iOS and Android — uses zero-knowledge proofs (ZK-proofs) to allow users to prove their age without revealing their identity.

The app creates an encrypted ID that can be used for age checks on third-party services. Concordium framed the launch as a privacy-friendly alternative to traditional ID-based systems at a time when concerns about government-mandated verification are growing.

“The truth is that the web has never had a viable age verification system, resulting in piecemeal solutions that are ineffective at best and a privacy risk at worst,” Concordium CEO Boris Bohrer-Bilowitzki said.

A private age verification solution

ZK-proofs allow a party to prove they know certain information without revealing it. This type of cryptography is particularly popular among privacy-focused cryptocurrency developers, with Zcash (ZEC) utilizing it for anonymous transfers and decentralized mixer Tornado Cash for anonymizing Ether transactions (ETH).

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A Concordium representative told Cointelegraph that the service is a consumer mobile application that is available for download on iPhone and Android devices. Consumers can create a Concordium ID using the app for about $0.01, which can be used for verification on integrated services.

Concordium said its app allows verification of attributes such as name, date of birth, nationality and document type. In practice, the company said, none of this information is exposed to service providers. Instead, ZK-proofs confirm that a user meets requirements like being over 18.

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Can the UK’s online age verification rules protect privacy?

The launch follows controversy surrounding the UK’s recently introduced mandatory online ID checks for age verification to view adult content, a definition broad enough to include Wikipedia.

Privacy advocates strongly criticized the UK measure, with VPN apps seeing growing popularity in the country as government officials suggest cracking down on them as well. The implementation of the new measures became compulsory on Tuesday.

UK laws requiring ID verification for accessing adult content are tech-neutral. The local communication regulator, Ofcom, stated in its guidance document that reusable digital ID wallets that share an “adult/over-18” attribute are a valid implementation.

This could potentially allow for the use of a ZK-proof-based service as long as it meets Ofcom’s “highly effective” standard and UK data protection duties. A Concordium spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the firm and its partners “are actively engaging with Ofcom” on their age verification solutions.

Interest in ZK-proofs extends beyond crypto projects. Google Wallet, the search giant’s payment and digital card management application, announced in late April that it had integrated ZK-proofs for age verification.

“This implementation allows us to provide speedy age verification across a wide range of mobile devices, apps and websites,” Google said.

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