Microsoft has rolled out age verification to UK Xbox users in compliance with the UK’s Online Safety Act.
In an Xbox Wire post, published on July 28, Xbox’s vice president of gaming trust and safety, Kim Kunes, detailed how the company is implementing age verification to comply with the new set of UK laws, which aim to protect adults and children online.
“Beginning today, as part of our compliance program for the UK Online Safety Act and our ongoing investments in tools and technologies that help ensure age-appropriate experiences, players who indicate their account age as 18 and over, based in the UK, and signing into an Xbox experience with a Microsoft account will begin seeing notifications encouraging them to verify their age,” the post reads.
At present, Xbox users “can continue to play and enjoy Xbox” without verifying their age. However, starting early 2026, age verification will be required for UK Xbox users with adult accounts to access the platform’s full range of social features, including voice chat and messaging.
Those who don’t verify their age will only be able to use Xbox’s social features with friends until they complete the process, but not verifying your account will not affect “previous purchases, entitlements, gameplay history, achievements, or the ability to play and purchase games.”
Xbox users can verify their account now through Yoti. Age verification methods include proof of a government-issued ID, age estimation, mobile provider check, and credit card check.
“As this age verification process rolls out across the UK, we’ll continue to evaluate how we can keep players around the world safe and learn from the UK process,” the post continues. “We expect to roll out age verification processes to more regions in the future. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to player safety, so these methods may look different across regions and experiences.
“We’ll work with local communities, publishing partners, and regulators to determine the right approach that both respects player privacy and doesn’t take away from the Xbox gameplay experience. We’ll continue to communicate the changes we’re making to our practices and the data we collect so we can better protect players on our platform.”
The Online Safety Act was rolled out in the UK on July 25, 2025, and states that “services who have users in the UK need to be safe by design, and have a higher standard of protection for children than adults, whilst providing transparency and accountability in relation to those services.”
Video games fall within the legislation’s scope, requiring game companies to comply – though some smaller game firms have struggled with its complexities.
