Utah’s New Age Verification Law Aims at VPN Users: What Gamers Need to Know
Age verification is making some serious waves in the United States these days, especially with a new law set to roll out in California next year that will require operating systems to verify a user’s age right from account setup. On top of that, a proposal called the “Parents Decide Act” could extend similar requirements nationwide. But putting those issues aside for a second, let’s talk about what Utah is doing to tackle this situation.
Introducing Senate Bill 73, Utah’s Online Age Verification Amendments, which kicks off on May 6. This makes Utah the first state to implement age verification laws that specifically target users of VPNs. Under this new law, websites that have a significant amount of content potentially harmful to minors will need to verify the ages of their users. And here’s the kicker: even if someone tries to bypass this with a VPN, the sites are still held responsible.
The law states, “An individual is considered to be accessing the website from this state if the individual is actually located in the state, regardless of whether the individual is using a virtual private network.” Moreover, it explicitly prohibits websites from providing instructions on how to use a VPN to evade these checks.
If you’ve ever used a VPN, you can probably see a major issue here. These tools are designed to mask your location, making it practically impossible for sites to accurately identify and block Utah users who might be trying to dodge age verification. NordVPN chimed in with a statement, arguing that reliably detecting Utah-based VPN users would be “technically impossible,” turning it into a “liability trap” for businesses caught in this web.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit focused on digital privacy, also criticized the law, suggesting it doesn’t offer a clear path for adult sites. It could unintentionally lead to a dangerous precedent where websites either ban all known VPN IPs or force age verification for every single visitor globally. This would mean millions of users could face invasive identity checks or even restrictions on their VPN usage—regardless of where they actually live.
For gamers and online users alike, this law raises significant privacy concerns. Nobody wants to share their personal data with third parties, especially when gaming online. As we navigate this new digital landscape, it’s essential to stay informed about these changes and their potential impact on our online freedom.