Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Verisign Develops Token for Age Verification

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the plugging-in dept.

FirstTimeCaller writes "A Reuters article is reporting that Verisign in conjunction with an unnamed children's safety group, will release a USB token that can be plugged into a PC to verify the age and gender of a person participating in online chat rooms. According to the article, the token will be available free to students in a handful of schools this fall. School administrators will provide a list of students, with their ages and genders, and VeriSign will encode that information onto the tokens."

24 of 417 comments (clear)

  1. I Hope... by artlu · · Score: 1, Funny

    I wont have to get these.. it would keep me out of the bar!

    gShares.net

    --
    -------
    artlu.net
  2. Sending it to colleges? by P-Frank · · Score: 5, Funny

    Excellent! I figure by about noon tomorrow I'll download a patch that "officially" makes me a 16 year old girl.

    1. Re:Sending it to colleges? by Talthane · · Score: 3, Funny

      I figure by about noon tomorrow I'll download a patch that "officially" makes me a 16 year old girl.

      Well, everyone needs a hobby.

      --
      "This is why men never share their feelings; because women always remember." -Just Shoot Me.
  3. Oh noes! by IntelliTubbie · · Score: 1, Funny

    Does this mean that "she looked 18" is no longer a valid defense?

    Cheers,
    IT

    --

    Power corrupts. PowerPoint corrupts absolutely.

    1. Re:Oh noes! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny
      Baby, before I put my hot love stick into you, please insert your USB stick into my PocketPC for age verification.

      ~~~

    2. Re:Oh noes! by Tony+Hoyle · · Score: 3, Funny

      But "She had a token proving she was 18" is very probably a valid defence....

  4. Re:Great... by animaal · · Score: 3, Funny

    "...All it takes is enough drink and the right students..."

    Ah, the good old days of student dating...

  5. Blackmarket by mrph · · Score: 1, Funny

    Imagine the kind of money a 16-year old girls ID tag would bring in.
    When the black market for these things gets up to speed, the situation will be as silly as it is today .

  6. And you know it'll never be cracked because... by eric_brissette · · Score: 2, Funny

    ... it's all encrypted on a Lexar JumpDrive

  7. Re:Age? by nagora · · Score: 1, Funny
    Otherwise, come the kids birthday, the token will need updating again.

    And Verisign get paid again. I think you've hit on a business plan, there.

    TWW

    --
    "Encyclopedia" is to "Wikipedia" what "Library" is to "Some people at a bus stop"
  8. Re:Cart before the horse..... by sita · · Score: 1, Funny

    Untill they surgically graft these fobbles to the children and make them unstealable (ooops not possible), then they are pointless.

    Even then, a pedophile could steal a kid and insert him or her into his USB socket.

  9. eeeeewwwwwww by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny
    Creeper! When I saw u on #funtalk teh other nite, u were all like a/s/l? And I was all liek no. u a/s/l first! and u were all like 16 and thwen we cybered.

    Now ur saying studnt dating is the good ol days? ur not 16! Gross!

  10. So perverts now have a legitimate reason to ask.. by Zog+The+Undeniable · · Score: 2, Funny

    "Let me see your dongle."

    --
    When I am king, you will be first against the wall.
  11. Re:Get lost Veribad. by goldspider · · Score: 4, Funny

    Use of Tired Cliches: Check!
    Arrogance: Check!
    Rightious Indignity: Check!
    Teen Angst: Check!
    Hip-Sounding Paranoia: Check!
    Rebellion Against "The Man": Check!

    Thank you for verifying your age. You are indeed a teenager as you claim.

    -Verisign

    --
    "Ask not what your country can do for you." --John F. Kennedy
  12. Re:Credit card ? by Tim+C · · Score: 1, Funny

    Besides the "problem" of pedophiles in "chat rooms" being completely overblown

    That's just what they want you to think! In reality, they've taken over a part of the internet the size of Wales!!

    --
    It's official. Most of you are morons.
  13. it's a start by chegosaurus · · Score: 3, Funny

    So now I know the girl I'm talking to is genuinely 16. Now all I need is a token that proves she's genuinely hot.

  14. Re:Rule #1 by Taladar · · Score: 3, Funny
    noncounterproductive
    You mean "productive"?
    --
    Linux is not Windows
  15. Re:There's already a device that protects children by JazzXP · · Score: 1, Funny

    Nope, doesn't work... many are faulty and should be returned.

  16. In lieu of a credit card, here's how it works by 192939495969798999 · · Score: 3, Funny

    The device drills a hole in the kid's head and counts the rings. TGIF!

    --
    stuff |
  17. Re:Rule #1 by Bastian · · Score: 2, Funny

    Yes.

    In the same way that non-negative means >0.

  18. What's the point? by liquidsin · · Score: 2, Funny

    I'm already working under the assumption that every eleven year old girl I'm chatting up on irc is either a 37 y/o truck driver from Idaho or an FBI agent.

    --
    do not read this line twice.
  19. Can't they come up with a better stupid idea? by scruffy · · Score: 2, Funny
    Surely Verisign can come up with a better stupid idea than this.

    Oh yeah, there was Sitefinder. Never mind.

  20. Not New by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Gender verification by checking a dongle has been going on for generations. The state of the dongle may also provide some information about the person's age (among other things), but this is usually less accurate.

  21. Little Girl by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Good, Because I really hate when I am chatting up a little girl and she turns out to be a cop