Lax control lets teenagers buy inappropriate material online

A nationwide survey among 1,000 male and female teenagers aged 13-17 years found that young people are consistently trying to buy inappropriate material online.

In thousands of cases across the country they are successfully buying alcohol and adult DVDs as a result of poor levels of age verification.

Recent advances in online technology mean websites can now immediately verify anyone who tries to buy or access material which could be deemed inappropriate, by cross-referencing existing ID and age data - allowing online firms to keep sites user-friendly while putting security measures in place to protect young people.

The survey showed that online retailers are still failing to verify customer ages, apart from the UK online gambling industry which has embraced the latest age and ID verification processes.

Two thirds of 13-17 year olds have been asked for ID in shops when trying to buy inappropriate material over the past year, yet just 18% of young people have been asked to prove their ID when trying to buy similar items online over the same period.

According to the research conducted by GB Group, the UK’s leading identity management company, almost half of the teenage boys questioned have tried to buy adult DVDs or violent video games online in the past year.

More than three quarters of them were successful. A similar number of 15 year olds have been able to buy dangerous objects like knives online.

A quarter of teenage boys and over a third of teenage girls under 18 have managed to buy items online using someone else’s credit card.

The Online Purchasing of Goods and Services (Age Verification) Bill receives a second reading in Parliament this week.

Introduced by Margaret Moran, Labour MP for Luton South, the proposals aim to ensure that anyone selling age-restricted goods and services over the internet has to take steps to verify if customers are old enough.

GB Group, who conducted the research, assisted the UK online gaming industry protect vulnerable and young people from accessing inappropriate online material.

Online gaming firms are obliged under official rules to undertake age checks.

Their research shows there is an urgent need for online retailers to take a more responsible approach to protecting youngsters from buying inappropriate goods online.

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