Xbox lets ‘longstanding’ accounts bypass age verification checks

Xbox is sending out messages, informing qualifying gamers with longstanding accounts that they've been auto-approved for age verification.

Following the implementation of the Online Safety Act in the UK in 2025, Xbox users were required to prove their identity and age; otherwise, they would lose access to basic online features such as sending messages and taking part in chat groups on Xbox.

However, many Xbox gamers felt this to be unnecessary, especially with some having Xbox Live accounts since the original Xbox in 2002, meaning that some accounts were well over an adult age and should have been enough proof in its own right.

I’ve had my account since the Xbox 360, and being the kind of person not to trust corporations with my personal data all that much, as well as the age of my account, I refused to proceed with the age verification process.

However, like many, I received a message through my Xbox on August 10, 2026, informing us that due to our “longstanding” accounts, our age verification has been auto-approved.

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Here’s what Microsoft said in the age verification message:

“Due to longstanding account activity, we've estimated your Xbox profile to be an adult account and updated its age verification status to 'Verified'. You are no longer required to complete full age verification for uninterrupted access to social features on Xbox. While no further action is required, you can update your privacy and safety settings on Xbox at any time.”

What is age verification and why does it exist?

In July 2025, following the UK government's decision to impose age verification checks to access some social media accounts, Xbox, along with PlayStation, followed suit.

The common corporate justification is to protect children, while many believe it’s a tactic by governments to have more control over people online, and learn patterned behaviour.

To complete checks, people would have to share information such as a passport or driving licence ID, upload a face scan or, probably the least intrusive method, share a mobile number to help determine an age. This information is then apparently safely stored for a short period of time by a “trusted” third-party company, most commonly Yoti.

Understandably, people were very sceptical, not only about having to trust a company they know nothing about with sensitive information, but also the prospect of a data breach sharing that information with the dark web. Age verification was also imposed as a “right to work” to prove identity, despite the National Insurance fulfilling that role in the UK for decades.

Most people would probably agree that certain protections need to be in place, especially when it concerns young people online. However, there’s a major trust issue with how corporations handle our sensitive data, no matter what they tell us to ease our concerns.

Now that Microsoft has begun auto-approving Xbox accounts, it will be interesting to see if Sony does the same with PlayStation. Only time will tell.

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