IdeaWell

Project ideas from Hacker News discussions.

So, you’ve hit an age gate. What now?

Original Article

Hacker News Discussion

📝 Discussion Summary (Click to expand)

Here is a summary of the 4 most prevalent themes from the Hacker News discussion:

1. Workarounds are risky but inevitable

Many users suggested using VPNs, VPNs, or AI-generated images to bypass age verification, but there was significant concern that these methods are becoming harder to use and will eventually lead to a ban on privacy tools entirely.

  • JoshTriplett: "I'm surprised that the EFF does not highlight the best option, here: use a VPN to a jurisdiction that doesn't have such ridiculous laws."
  • cedws: "After enough countries enact their own age verification laws tech companies will just make that the global default policy... Many sites already block and throttle VPNs."
  • drnick1: "Switch VPN region or upload a random picture generated by AI, problem solved."

2. Age verification is a privacy and security disaster

Commenters overwhelmingly argued that requiring personal identification or face scans creates massive honeypots for hackers and gives corporations valuable data they will inevitably misuse or sell.

  • shevy-java: "I think the truth is, they just want your face. They treat people as data points and cash cows."
  • firefoxd: "If I upload my ID online for verification, it has to go through the wires. Once it reaches someone else's server, I can never get it back, and I have no control over what they do with it."
  • pixl97: "Did you hear they are letting kids play pickleball these days! How scandalous." (Mocking the overreach and absurdity of the laws).

3. The "Solutions" don't actually work

Users noted that existing age verification methods are easily fooled by children using stock photos or their parents' accounts, and that normalizing the uploading of IDs is dangerous hygiene for kids.

  • ryandrake: "My kid has recently just quit playing Roblox because of the sketchy facial age check process... they're either moving on to other games or just downloading stock photos of people from the internet and uploading those (which apparently works)."
  • everyday7732: "saw a recent screenshot of someone doing it yesterday, so I think it still is a thing." (Referring to using game screenshots to verify age).
  • kube-system: "These ID laws typically require a solution to be 'commercially practical' or similar. The standard is not 'impenetrable and impossible to circumvent'."

4. The fundamental debate over government control

A split emerged between users who felt the government should not mandate internet surveillance, and others who argued that protecting children justifies the trade-off, even if it means abandoning certain services.

  • pc86: "The answer isn't to use a VPN to get around it (and thus give fodder to your enemies) but to change the law."
  • dakiol: "I’ve noticed that many people struggle to simply let things go... If a site asks me one question about me, I stop using it."
  • t-3: "Think back to when you were a child. Did age verification ever stop you from doing anything?... None of these things protect kids, they just annoy them and teach them that authority is stupid."

🚀 Project Ideas

Age Gate Circumvention Assistant

Summary

  • [A browser extension that intelligently bypasses or automates age verification gates across websites without requiring users to upload personal data or use VPNs.]
  • [Core value proposition: Reclaims user privacy and convenience by automating the frustrating process of age verification, using advanced detection and bypass techniques.]

Details

Key Value
Target Audience Privacy-conscious internet users, HN readers, parents, and activists frustrated by ubiquitous age gates.
Core Feature Detects age verification modals, overlays, and redirects; attempts to bypass via DOM manipulation, cookie injection, or API mocking; fallback to AI-generated faces or pre-vetted anonymous credentials.
Tech Stack Browser Extension (Chrome/Firefox/Edge), JavaScript, WebAssembly, optional optional local ML model for face generation.
Difficulty Medium
Monetization Hobby

Notes

  • [HN commenters expressed frustration with VPNs being blocked (j-krieger: "VPNs are increasingly useless... most major sites are unusable with a common VPN provider") and a desire to avoid sharing personal data. This tool provides a direct technical solution to the "How can I get around this?" problem without requiring a VPN.]
  • [Practical utility is high; users are actively looking for ways to circumvent these gates, as seen in discussions about using AI-generated photos or game screenshots. This tool would systematize and improve those methods.]

Privacy-Preserving Age Verifier SDK

Summary

  • [An open-source, browser-agnostic SDK that allows websites to verify user age using privacy-preserving cryptographic methods (e.g., zero-knowledge proofs) or government e-ID integrations without storing user PII.]
  • [Core value proposition: Enables websites to comply with age verification laws without creating massive privacy risks or data honeypots, satisfying both regulators and privacy advocates.]

Details

Key Value
Target Audience Web developers, website owners, privacy-focused platforms, and government agencies looking for compliant verification methods.
Core Feature SDK for integration into login/signup flows; supports ZK-proofs, government e-ID wallets (like EU's), and third-party attestation services; no data storage on the provider's side.
Tech Stack Rust/C++ for performance, JavaScript/TypeScript SDK, WebAuthn, cryptography libraries (ZK-SNARKs).
Difficulty High
Monetization Revenue-ready: SaaS pricing for enterprise support, premium features, and compliance consulting.

Notes

  • [Commenters like cloudfudge and tzs discussed the need for a "privacy-preserving identity service" and praised the EU's e-ID wallet concept. This tool directly addresses the technical gap identified in those discussions.]
  • [The discussion highlights a market gap: existing solutions are invasive or ineffective. This proposal offers a technical standard that satisfies both legal and privacy requirements.]

Digital ID Marketplace for Parents

Summary

  • [A service that aggregates and curates parental control solutions, focusing on device-level and network-level controls rather than platform-level age gates. Offers a dashboard to manage whitelists/blacklists across devices.]
  • [Core value proposition: Solves the fragmented parental control market by providing a unified, easy-to-use platform for parents to enforce age-appropriate content rules without relying on flawed or invasive age verification by individual sites.]

Details

Key Value
Target Audience Parents, particularly those of younger children (under 13-16) navigating an increasingly gated internet.
Core Feature Curated app store for parental control tools; cross-device management dashboard; pre-configured rulesets for different age groups; network-level filtering options.
Tech Stack Web dashboard, Mobile apps (iOS/Android), Router firmware integrations (OpenWRT).
Difficulty Medium
Monetization Revenue-ready: Affiliate revenue from tool sales, premium subscription for advanced features and support.

Notes

  • [Users like kevmo and ryandrake discuss the struggle of managing kids' online access and the failure of platforms like Roblox to protect children. This tool shifts the locus of control back to the parent/child device level, bypassing the need for platform cooperation.]
  • [The conversation around "bad parents" and the difficulty of managing multiple systems (cortesoft) highlights a clear pain point: parents need better, consolidated tools.]

Anonymous Age Token Scraper

Summary

  • [A web service that allows users to buy anonymous "age tokens" (like physical scratch cards or digital codes) from physical retailers (gas stations, grocery stores) and redeem them online for age verification without linking to identity.]
  • [Core value proposition: Provides a fully anonymous, offline method for age verification that mirrors the existing, trusted process of buying alcohol/tobacco, solving the privacy issue of digital ID uploads.]

Details

Key Value
Target Audience Privacy advocates, individuals in regions with strict age verification laws, and users opposed to digital ID linking.
Core Feature Generation and distribution of unique, non-traceable tokens; API for websites to validate tokens; POS integration for retailers.
Tech Stack Secure token generation (cryptographic hashing), POS integration APIs, simple web API.
Difficulty Medium
Monetization Revenue-ready: Revenue share with retailers, transaction fees from redeemed tokens, B2B licensing to websites.

Notes

  • [This idea is a direct implementation of a concept discussed by several HN commenters (ndsipa_pomu, triceratops, autoexec), who proposed buying scratch cards like those for cigarettes. It addresses the core objection that "there's no way to know if our information is securely stored" (firefoxd).]
  • [It solves the problem of online data leakage by keeping the verification process almost entirely offline, aligning with the "privacy-first" sentiment prevalent in the discussion.]

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