How Identity Verification Technology Can Benefit Age-Restricted Businesses

Smartphones have become an invaluable asset in our modern lives, lending their powerful capabilities to help us work smarter and more efficiently. 91% of individuals use their smartphone to make online purchases, and in addition, mobile commerce sales are predicted to make up 6% of all retail sales by 2023. Age-restricted retailers are finding it more challenging to control their offerings considering the unprecedented level of access to online goods and services. It can be challenging to confirm someone’s age online, especially since using a genuine credit card to make a purchase is so easy. ID verification solutions provide a significant and vital barrier to purchase for age-restricted commerce vendors. There are more regulations requiring businesses to confirm their customers’ ages before offering them age-restricted goods and services. A user cannot be verified by just providing their date of birth from their social profiles. These conventional methods of verification have allowed many minors, especially savvy teenagers, access to internet gambling sites or alcohol. It is crucial to raise the entry barrier significantly for age-restricted products and services because doing so might result in negative legal consequences, hefty penalties, and a damaged reputation. Age-restricted businesses face a critical need to verify the age of their customers. Identity verification solutions offer an effective solution, enabling these establishments to remain compliant with laws and regulations while providing secure access for rightful patrons.

Age-Restricted Commerce and ID Verification Solutions

Legislation requiring age verification for businesses including online gaming, gambling, pharmaceuticals, tobacco & alcohol, and dating apps has been passed in numerous countries around the globe. This is also true in the US, where many states have regulations in place that control industries with age restrictions. To abide by these rules, there is a demand for methods to properly check users’ ages. Solutions for digital identity verification meet these requirements. Many businesses are aware that they require services for digital identity verification. They are concerned about minors purchasing restricted goods and using their platforms. Today, we’ll look at several key sectors that can benefit from ID verification technologies.

Alcohol and Tobacco Companies

On a worldwide scale, there are severe regulations on both alcohol and tobacco. The FDA specifically forbids selling cigarettes to minors. Also, only those who are at least 21 years old are allowed to purchase alcohol in the US. It’s crucial for online stores that sell alcohol and cigarettes to be able to accurately identify their customers before the purchase is made.

Online Gaming

Online gaming appeals to both kids and teenagers. If played too much, they can cause bad habits to form. Also, kids can play with individuals of any age from around the world in a lot of online games. Unrestricted gaming interactions can easily lead to children falling for fraud, being exploited, hearing offensive language, or even being bullied. For these reasons, many gaming businesses should think about implementing an age restriction in their games to make sure that users of their platforms are of legal playing age. Platforms must take all reasonable measures to keep children out of their systems.

Pharmaceutical Companies

Online pharmacies have shown up as a quick and practical method for people to get their prescriptions. But young people who have problems with drugs constitute a serious risk for online pharmacies. Medications are subject to strict regulation, and online pharmacies’ records are managed by regulatory bodies. Using age verification procedures is crucial for online pharmacies since it promotes safe business practices and builds trust with regulatory bodies.

Online Dating Sites

Websites and applications for online dating are online services with very minimal entry barriers. Underage usage of dating apps puts both minors and adult users at risk. In most places, dating while underage is prohibited since it endangers both the child and the adult. Minors engaged in such cases could experience trauma from suspected underage assault and other troubling issues, while adults involved may face lifelong legal consequences. Instead of merely relying on information from social profiles, dating apps must do their part to verify their user base with reliable identity verification services.

Conclusion

Online identity verification can be used to access age-restricted goods and services in a range of businesses. Instead of leaving it up to customers to enforce their own rules, online businesses should take some of the responsibility for controlling who can access their products and services. Online age verification is made a little bit simpler for businesses by robust identification verification, which gives them a way to precisely establish the age of their customers. FTx Identity is a powerful tool that can protect your business as well as its customers. Be sure to take advantage of all the many capabilities it offers, which will give you peace of mind when it comes to keeping up with legal requirements and other safety measures. Interested in learning more? Visit ftxidentity.com today!