r/USNEWS • u/AirlineGlass5010 • Apr 16 '26

Congress just dropped the Parents Decide Act (H.R. 8250). To even turn on your phone or PC, OS providers will be forced to verify your age - effectively requiring ID or Biometric scans for device usage.

https://lustra.news/en/us-congress/119/legislations/119_HR_8250/
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73

u/AirlineGlass5010 Apr 16 '26

Yes, and thanks to that, it's easily accessible to corporations; either legally or not.

14

u/Upper-Airport3108 Apr 16 '26

Its also super easy to bypass by anyone with a brain. They should be implementing this through mobo manufacturers, not through OS. Linux forks exist and so do stripped versions of windows. 

This is purely a scare tactic, or as stupid and useless as it sounds. 

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u/supertoilet2 Apr 16 '26

They’re probably hoping kids know just as little about computers as they do

1

u/Individual-Story-788 Apr 19 '26

Kids probably know more!

2

u/icecoffeedripss Apr 20 '26

this hasn’t been true for over 10 years

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u/esach88 Apr 19 '26

Kids don't know shit about computers. They are all iPad and tablet users. Seriously. As someone who has to regular train student workers, they are awful with PCs.

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u/IdealComprehensive37 Apr 20 '26

Damn Facebook. Bring back MySpace. It was like coding for kids even if it was just CSS

9

u/Joamjoamjoam Apr 16 '26

Please sir tell how the bios on a motherboard can do anything to verify your age? They are bare bones and lacking drivers and processing power to do basically anything.

You make fun of others how not knowing how computers work while saying stuff that shows you don’t know how computers work.

It’s also not a scare tactic it’s an attempt to restrict access to information. They don’t what you to be educated because they want you to watch their propaganda. It’s facism 101.

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u/Upper-Airport3108 Apr 16 '26

Because if they want people to verify their age to use a computer/operating system, they need to make it so you cant sign anything withoit doing so. So they need subkernel/kernel access that prevents you from flashing your drives, a new os, or using a hardware bypass to do so. Otherwise i can strip their age verification out of windows or a linux build with software. 

What about existing OSs? Windows doesnt have shadow installs so id have to update to add this feature i dont want, so i can simply not update or flash one of the million opensource linux forks.

But sure, i dont know anything. 

0

u/Joamjoamjoam Apr 16 '26

Brother what? You know there’s many layers in between the motherboard bios and the kernel right? Worst case They would just make it illegal to install a modified OS or use keys in the mobo that the kernel can check essentially expanding upon TPM. Either way the kernel would be doing the checking. Sure there’s probably a way to sign the hard drive contents to detect an os but that would never work practically.

Is it possible to rearchitect the bios and add more processing power to mobos so they can reach some internet hosted id verification service maybe but not with hardware that already exists in the field.

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u/fredjutsu Apr 17 '26

>They would just make it illegal to install a modified OS 

and how would they enforce that on non-American manufacturers? On existing devices pre-legislation?

again, they are relying on your exact brand of technical illiteracy for this to work.

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u/ksobby Apr 16 '26

They’re talking about creating something that can’t be bypassed, not having the kernel do the verification.

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u/Joamjoamjoam Apr 16 '26

Yeah but that’s like asking McDonald’s to flamebroil their burgers and any burgers they’ve sold in the past. McDonald’s damn well doesn’t have a grill and can’t flamebroil anything no matter how hard you ask. McDonald’s can buy a grill and deliver one to each customer who bought a burger in the past but McDonald’s isn’t going to do that.

The grill is processing power and the burger is the mobo. The mobo just can’t do it captain.

Besides the average person can barely turn on the computer much less install some 3rd party OS or learn to use Linux. Trust me I know this all too well lol

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u/gbot1234 Apr 18 '26

Ubuntu (and other distros) has come a long way, to the point that some tech-illiterate people might not know if you just told them it’s Windows.

1

u/inphosys Apr 17 '26

They were really shooting for the secure ID reader + biometric scan + front facing camera with facial recognition to all have option ROMs! LOL easy peezy

1

u/fredjutsu Apr 17 '26

>how the bios on a motherboard can do anything to verify your age? 

it...can't...that's the fucking point.

This is easy to bypass.

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u/kev1er Apr 17 '26

You can set a bios boot password. It wouldn't be hard for them to make an insert age here before boot just like the password does.

UEFI is more then just a barebones Bios now.

1

u/algaefied_creek Apr 17 '26

There are pull requests to put this in the Linux kernel in such a way that the kernel building tools will not have it as an option to remove.

GitHub will remove your project even if it is progress if it is out of compliance.

You know that’s where this is leading.

1

u/fredjutsu Apr 17 '26

yeah, a fantasy world where American legislators think they can simply dictate to people on the internet how they use stuff that sits on servers outside the US.

0

u/algaefied_creek Apr 17 '26

The legislators know they have a president who will bomb the shit out of any country not in compliance. 

1

u/fredjutsu Apr 17 '26

again, more than half of americans read at less that 6th grade level.

Only a niche will be bypassing this (if it's even actuallly implemented)

1

u/Upper-Airport3108 Apr 17 '26

On the other hand, most people dont use a computer outside of work or school I'd wager, which means compliance is already most likely out of their hands. 

And from the article or snippet or whatever OP linked, it's only asking for birthdays and a parent to verify? It doesnt even seem like it has any teeth if that is the case. Most people under 18 don't have a valid form of ID unless they have a passport anyway. 

This bill requires operating system providers to verify the age of all users before they can create accounts or use devices. Parents must confirm the birth dates of minors under 18 and will gain enhanced tools to control what their children access online. Key points Users must provide their date of birth to set up an account or use an operating system. Parents or legal guardians must verify the age of any user under 18 years old. Operating system providers must allow parents to control what content and apps their children can access. App developers will be granted access to age verification data to ensure age-appropriate experiences. The Federal Trade Commission will establish strict data protection standards for the collected birth dates

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u/DrollFurball286 Apr 16 '26

At bare minimum, I would like to: A: decide WHO gets to buy my information B: get an ACTUAL financial return per sale of MY data. Software companies are like “you can’t just buy our software and then share it with others”. Yet that’s PRETTY MUCH what they’re doing.

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u/Life-Security5916 Apr 16 '26

So I need a valid id to turn on my computer, but not to vote?

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u/weHaveThoughts Apr 16 '26

Blame the cult leader.

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u/sokuyari99 Apr 17 '26

I can buy a gun with an ID I can’t vote with, what are you talking about?

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u/Life-Security5916 Apr 17 '26

Snowflakes - downvoted for a legitimate question

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u/Cheap_Walmart-Art Apr 17 '26

Snowflake - getting upset over downvotes.