Earlier this month, a number of organizations, including the Open Rights Group and Mozilla, jointly issued a statement criticizing the British government's plan to subject online services such as VPNs to mandatory age verification, arguing that this approach would threaten the open Internet environment. On this basis, Mozilla recently formally submitted a submission to the British government, systematically explaining its position against the implementation of "age gates" on VPNs and similar functions.
Mozilla emphasizes in the document that VPNs are an essential tool for users of all ages to protect privacy and security, and this is actually acknowledged in the government's own consultation document - government documents clearly mention that VPNs can provide privacy protection and data security. However, the British government's main concern is that minors may bypass age restrictions through VPNs and access inappropriate content. Mozilla believes that the existing data simply cannot support such a claim, and that the government has "lost its eyes" on the true motivations of children using VPNs.
Mozilla cited a study released in December by the nonprofit Internet Matters that found only 8% of children had used a VPN in the past 12 months. As many as 66% of these users stated that their primary purpose was to protect personal data rather than bypass age restrictions. Research by another organization, Childnet, also showed that 38% of children’s VPN users said they chose to use a VPN to “stay safe online.” Furthermore, a recent report from Internet Matters in May of this year estimated that only 7% of children use VPNs with the purpose of circumventing age restrictions.
Mozilla pointed out that there are already a lot of easier and more common "bypasses" than VPNs. In the feedback it collected, children were more likely to fill in false birthdays directly, or use their parents’ accounts and devices to log in to related services. There are even anecdotes such as "painting a beard to fool facial recognition" are mentioned to illustrate that some current age recognition systems are themselves easily deceived by simple disguises.
In an accompanying blog post, Mozilla emphasized that VPNs are also an important privacy tool for minors, helping them protect against online tracking, targeted advertising, and the collection of personal data for commercial purposes without adequate notice and consent. Mozilla believes that by "taking VPNs away" from younger users in the name of age verification, you are actually depriving them of a tool that helps them stay safer online.
In response to the current policy direction of the British government, Mozilla put forward alternative suggestions. It advocates that the government should rely more on the Online Safety Act to hold platform entities accountable and require them to effectively fulfill their obligations to protect minors, rather than "treating the headache" by restricting basic privacy tools. At the same time, Mozilla recommends that the authorities encourage parents to use parental control functions appropriately and increase investment to improve the public's overall digital literacy and network safety skills to build a healthier online environment.
Mozilla also reminded in the submission that although it has long regarded itself as a privacy advocate, it also operates its own VPN service, so it is not completely "without a position" on this issue. Even so, it still insists that considering VPNs simply as a "tool to bypass age restrictions" based on data and security practices and imposing severe restrictions will not only misjudge the reality, but may also have a long-term negative impact on the online privacy and security of children and the public.