Instant messaging and VoIP social platform Discord is experimenting with a feature that requires some users to verify their age by scanning their face or a photo ID. The technique is being implemented in Australia and the United Kingdom, where recently passed laws seek to crack down on minors accessing potentially harmful online content. The safeguard applies only to users who haven’t previously verified their age on the chat platform. Discord says age verification aims “to help users manage content filter settings and sensitive content visibility,” explaining it is a one-time process that can be completed when users first adjust their settings.

“The app will ask users to scan their face through a computer or smartphone webcam; alternatively, they can scan a driver’s license or other form of ID,” Gizmodo reports.

The app is a staple among gamers, “but has been criticized as being abrasive and hard to navigate,” Gizmodo adds, noting “Discord has also been the target of concerns that it does not sufficiently protect minors from sexual content.”

The UK Online Safety Act requires “robust” age-checking by online platforms “that may host pornographic content” says Gizmodo. “Australia is requiring that under-16s be prevented from accessing social media platforms entirely.”

Meanwhile, CNBC reports that the New Jersey attorney general sued Discord last week, “alleging that the company misled consumers about child safety features.” The complaint claims Discord “has a ‘strategy of employing difficult to navigate and ambiguous safety settings to lull parents and children into a false sense of safety.’”

“Discord is placing a surprising amount of trust in the accuracy of the face scanning tool, given some users may be banned if the process decides they look too young to be using the platform,” suggests The Verge, which adds “users who are verified incorrectly can retry the process or request a manual review,” while “users who have been erroneously banned can appeal the decision.”

Discord explains how the process works in a support post.

The platform earned more than $600 million in revenue last year, according to Bloomberg, which says that was “primarily by upselling users on its Nitro premium service that includes features like custom emoji and larger file upload sizes.”

“Discord is reportedly preparing to go public on the stock market,” reports Gizmodo, “though those plans may change as the stock market continues to experience tumult amid President Trump’s global trade war.”